3rd April, 2025
Rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs won a partial victory on Monday when a sexual assault lawsuit filed against him last year was dismissed because the accuser declined to reveal her identity.
In the suit filed Oct. 24, a woman only identified as Jane Doe said Combs attempted to sexually assault her at an event in 1995, and when she fended him off he struck her. The woman is represented by Tony Buzbee, who filed a motion in January asking that she be allowed to remain anonymous while the case proceeds. The court rejected that motion and gave the woman until March 20 to refile under her real name, which she ultimately chose not to do.
“In this particular case, Jane Doe opted not to proceed. There is a lot of fear amongst these plaintiffs. I thus can’t blame her. These are tough cases and they are many times re-traumatizing for those who pursue them. Each case stands on its own merit. This woman chose not to proceed and subject herself to the media circus and the perceived danger she felt. We have to respect that,” Buzbee said in a statement.
“This is now the second case brought by these attorneys [Buzbee and his local counsel Antigone Curis] against Mr. Combs that has been dismissed in its entirety. It will not be the last. For months, we have seen case after case filed by individuals hiding behind anonymity, pushed forward by attorneys more focused on media headlines than legal merit. The other claims, like the one dismissed today, also will not hold up in a court of law,” Combs’ attorneys said in their own statement
It’s the second dismissal Combs has won in recent days; on March 24 a judge dismissed five counts from a separate sexual assault lawsuit, though accusations of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) violations against Combs personally, and the sexual assault and liability claims, were not dismissed.
These are just two of the more than 40 lawsuits he still faces, including one filed last week by a photographer who said Combs forced him to perform oral sex and other acts by threatening his career. As he has in every other lawsuit, Combs denied those allegations.
He also faces criminal charges of sex trafficking and racketeering and is currently in jail awaiting trial in New York.
Source: Yahoo News