CNN
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Leading up to his criminal trial, Sean “Diddy” Combs has bolstered his legal team, but one lawyer in the courtroom gained some attention as jury selection began this week.
High-profile attorney Mark Geragos – who has represented numerous celebrities including Michael Jackson, Chris Brown, Jussie Smollett as well as the Menendez brothers in their effort to be released from prison – has been present in the courtroom since Monday.
Mark Geragos’ daughter Teny Geragos is the second chair for the defense in the trial, but her father’s appearance in court on Monday drew the attention of prosecutors, who raised his presence in a written letter to the judge.
Prosecutors said the defense team appeared to consult with Mark Geragos which suggested that he has an “apparent role as an advisor to the defendant.” Prosecutors noted he has spoken publicly about the case and if he is working with Combs, he should have to abide by the same rules as other attorneys and not speak about the allegations.
“I’m here to support my daughter. (Combs) is a friend,” the elder Geragos told CNN on Tuesday when asked if he was advising the embattled music mogul’s legal team. He said he is not entering the case.
Last month, Combs hired Atlanta criminal defense attorney Brian Steel, who represented rapper Young Thug in his criminal racketeering trial. On Tuesday, another Atlanta attorney who represented a co-defendant in the same trial, Nicole Westmoreland, also joined the legal team.
Two days before jury selection began, on Friday, Combs added New York defense lawyer Xavier Donaldson. Donaldson appeared at several pretrial conferences and sat in the galley before he officially joined the legal team
The judge did not address Mark Geragos’ role or the prosecution’s letter in open court, however in a private discussion in the robing room, according to a transcript, the judge challenged him for comments he made on a podcast when he referred to the all-female prosecution team as a “six pack of white women.” Combs’ team previously filed a motion suggesting one of the charges against him was racially motivated.
Mark Geragos defended his remarks to the judge, saying, “I think when you’ve got a Black man who’s being prosecuted and the client feels like he’s being targeted, it’s a – it’s an observation.” He said he was referring to Combs as a client because he has represented him and “he hasn’t terminated me.”
The judge said to Mark Geragos, “I think referring to the prosecution in this case as a six-pack of white women is outrageous. All right. And I understand what you’re saying about the cases and everything else, but I think this is outrageous and this would not be tolerated in any court from any lawyer anywhere across the nation. And I’m going to be watching and I’m going to be listening. All right?”
Mark Geragos said he understood but claimed the “prejudgment rate of guilt” for Combs was at the same level as infamous murder cases he’s been involved in.
A jury for the federal sex trafficking trial is expected to be seated by the end of the day on Wednesday.
The parties are working toward qualifying a pool of 45 prospective jurors who’ve been vetted through the selection process this week. Judge Arun Subramanian will continue questioning new prospective jurors Wednesday to secure the final 10 needed to meet that goal.
The attorneys for each side will then take turns executing strikes on jurors they want eliminated from the pool to seat a panel of 12 and a number of alternates. Many of the prospective jurors qualified for the final pool Tuesday said they’d seen some media coverage of the allegations or had seen the hotel surveillance footage of Combs dragging and kicking his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura.
Combs stood when prospective jurors entered the court room for their one-on-one questioning. During the questioning, he appeared to pay attention while sitting between his attorneys at the defense table wearing a navy sweater, white collared shirt and gray pants.
One man who may be seated on Combs’ jury said he’d seen the 2016 hotel surveillance video of Combs assaulting his former girlfriend Ventura. The man said the video “gives the appearance of an angry hostile person who is entitled,” but said he thought he could be fair and impartial. He also said he thinks “mostly everybody saw the video.”
The third day of jury selection is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. ET Wednesday morning.
