Accuser of Sean 'Diddy' Combs cannot sue him without revealing her identity

31/10/2024 5:57

        A woman who accused Sean
        "Diddy" Combs of raping her two decades ago cannot sue him
        without revealing her identity, a federal judge ruled in a
        Wednesday decision whose reasoning could apply to other civil
        lawsuits against the music mogul.
        
        U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil in Manhattan said "the
        balance of interests at stake weighs strongly" against the
        plaintiff known as Jane Doe from continuing to use a pseudonym.
        
        Vyskocil's reasoning could apply to other civil lawsuits
        that have been or may be filed in Manhattan federal court
        against the 54-year-old Combs, who also faces criminal sex
        trafficking charges there.
        
        He has pleaded not guilty in the criminal case and denied
        wrongdoing in the civil cases.
        
        Doe, a Tennessee resident, said Combs raped her and
        threatened her life at a Manhattan hotel in 2004, when she was
        19.
        
        Her lawyers argued that using a pseudonym was justified
        because the accusations were highly sensitive, she could face
        physical and mental harm if named, and Combs' alleged violent
        behavior "created the very conditions" that warranted anonymity.
        
        Vyskocil, however, noted that several accusers including the
        singers Dawn Richard and Cassie, whose given name is Casandra
        Ventura, have sued Combs under their own names.
        
        She also said the Bad Boy record label founder was entitled
        to investigate Doe's background and credibility, and there was
        an "undeniable public interest" in identifying Combs' accusers.
        
        "Plaintiff's interest in avoiding public scrutiny, or even
        embarrassment, does not outweigh the interests of both Combs and
        the public in the customary and constitutionally-embedded
        presumption of openness in judicial proceedings," Vyskocil
        wrote.
        
        "Indeed, this is the kind of case that further the
        public's interest in enforcing legal and social norms," she
        added.
        
        Tony Buzbee and other lawyers who represent Doe did not
        immediately respond to requests for comment.
        
        Buzbee also represents many other male and female accusers
        suing Combs anonymously and has said he represents more than 150
        victims.
        
        Combs' representatives declined to comment.
        
        In the criminal case, Combs' lawyers also want federal
        prosecutors to identify his alleged victims, saying it would
        help Combs respond to other accusers and ease preparation for
        the scheduled May 5, 2025 trial.
        
        They also said Combs should not have to "play a guessing
        game—one made all the more challenging by the onslaught of
        baseless allegations that desperate plaintiffs are lodging at
        him (for the most part anonymously) in civil suits designed to
        exact a payoff."
        
        Combs was arrested on Sept. 16 and is being jailed in
        Brooklyn. He is appealing his detention.