Stuart Morton/Getty Images
Celebrity guests may have ‘relevant information’ and be summoned to testify
Combs’ lavish shindigs are being viewed in a new light after the 54-year-old rapper and businessman was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury last month on federal charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transportation for the purposes of prostitution.
Combs, who remains locked up at a Brooklyn jail, has vehemently denied the charges and has pleaded not guilty.
Some of the entertainment attorneys told BI that celebrities who attended Combs’ A-list parties could be summoned to testify at a trial, even if they don’t think they witnessed anything nefarious.
Jurors tend to view well-known people as credible witnesses, Dennison said.
“By all accounts, Mr. Combs threw very large parties, which likely had some form of guest list that may now be available to prosecutors,” Dennison said. “The only way for the prosecution to determine who knew what and when is to talk with those in attendance.”
Rahmani added that stars who attended Combs’ high-profile parties could have “relevant information” and be compelled to testify.
Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor, said he would advise these individuals to consult with their lawyer and their publicist “because a lot of dirty laundry” could soon be made public.
Camron Dowlatshahi, a Los Angeles entertainment attorney with Mills Sadat Dowlat LLP, agreed, saying it’s possible prosecutors may bring in celebrities for witness interviews.
However, Tre Lovell, an attorney and the owner of the Los Angeles-based Lovell Firm, told BI that he wouldn’t rush to call a lawyer simply for attending one of Combs’ parties as doing so “does not suggest unlawful or criminal activity.”
“He’s a very famous celebrity and has been for decades before his recent indictment,” Lovell told BI. “He’s had many legitimate parties over the years and, chances are, most celebrities and guests were not aware of his sex parties.”
However, if a celebrity actually participated in any of the “Freak Off” parties, “then that would be something different, and I would suggest contacting your attorney” to “strategize how best to deal with any potential criminal investigation,” Lovell said.
Johnny Nunez / WireImage
A woman recently sued Combs, alleging she was forced to have sex with guests at the White Parties
In one of a slew of civil lawsuits against Combs accusing him of sexual misconduct, the former porn star Adria English alleged Combs hired her as an entertainer for his White Parties at his Hamptons and Miami homes between 2004 and 2009 and forced her to have sex with guests.
In the lawsuit, filed in July in Manhattan federal court, English said that during one White Party, she was required to wear a black dress “to denote her capacity there as an employee, but more sinisterly as a sex trafficked sex worker.”
In response to the lawsuit, Combs’ attorney Jonathan Davis said: “No matter how many lawsuits are filed it won’t change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone. We live in a world where anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason and without any proof.”
Rahmani told BI that if there was “overlap and there were sex workers” at Combs’ parties, celebrity attendees should most definitely consult a lawyer.
If the “Freak Offs” that prosecutors allege Combs held were completely separate from his star-studded bashes, then guests who attended should have nothing to worry about, he said.