LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MAY 15: Host Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs attends the 2022 Billboard Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 15, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Sean Combs’ lawyers are requesting that he appear in court unshackled for all future court appearances and be held in his Miami mansion rather than a New York City jail.
Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, requested the late-night motion.
“We write on behalf of our client, Mr. Sean Combs, to respectfully request that the Court direct the United States Marshals Service to unshackle Mr. Combs prior to bringing him into the courtroom for tomorrow’s hearing and for all future court appearances,” Agnifilo wrote in the filing.
He then referenced the rapper’s Oct. 10 hearing in which he was in leg shackles, noting how the public caught wind of it. Agnifilo emphasized that this type of restraint could cause “juror bias” down the road.
Agnifilo argued that restraining the 55-year-old “prejudices the potential jury pool” and “undermines his presumption of innocence.”
The music mogul’s attorney also argued that shackling Combs impedes his ability to “communicate with counsel and offends the dignity and decorum of the proceedings.”
The rapper has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Earlier this month, Combs’ legal team proposed a $50 million bail package that included at-home detention at his Miami mansion with around-the-clock security.
The prosecution struck back, arguing that Combs should be denied bail for allegedly attempting to obstruct an investigation while in prison.
Prosecutors claimed that Combs compensated inmates through payment processing apps and commissary account deposits to obtain access to their telephone accounts, allowing him to make hundreds of phone calls and texts using their accounts—a violation of jail rules.
Several days later, Combs’ defense team responded, claiming the prosecution had violated the musician’s rights by searching his jail cell.
In light of this, Agnifilo requested an “immediate evidentiary hearing” to investigate the search and determine “who authorized a search of Mr. Combs’ sleeping area, personal effects and paperwork.”
A hotline for Combs’ victims reportedly received 12,000 calls in one day.
While waiting for his trial, Combs is being held at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center after being denied bail three times.
Combs’ trial is set to begin in May 2025.
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