Jury selection started on Monday in the federal trial of Sean Combs, which is expected to last well into the summer.
The judge overseeing the case, Arun Subramanian, questioned potential jurors gathered at Federal District Court in Manhattan about what they have seen and read about the accusations against the high-profile defendant, whose alleged misdeeds have been nearly inescapable in the news and on social media for the past year and a half. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering and sex trafficking.
Many of the potential jurors said they had been exposed to the case: on a television at the gym, through “water-cooler talk” among co-workers, via a comedian making jokes on Instagram. That exposure was not necessarily disqualifying as long as the potential jurors — who are not being identified by name — said they could decide the case based only on the evidence they saw in court.
“You understand that Mr. Combs is presumed innocent?” Judge Subramanian asked one potential juror, who said she had heard about the case on the radio and had been aware of Mr. Combs’s music and celebrity since the 1990s.
“Absolutely,” she replied.
Mr. Combs has been accused by the government of running a criminal enterprise that is responsible for facilitating a pattern of crimes over two decades, including sex trafficking, kidnapping, arson and drug violations. Prosecutors have accused Mr. Combs of coercing four women into sex, including his former girlfriend Casandra Ventura, who is expected to be a star witness in the trial.
The music mogul’s lawyers have said that the sex at the center of the government’s case was consensual.
Mr. Combs, who is being held at a Brooklyn jail, was permitted by the judge to have five button-down shirts, five pairs of pants, five sweaters and two pairs of shoes without laces to wear for his trial.
On Monday, he wore a navy blue sweater and a shirt with a white collar. He watched the potential jurors intently, sometimes leaning over to whisper to his lawyers. After one of them asked Judge Subramanian for a restroom break and the judge expressed hesitance, Mr. Combs spoke up briefly.
“I’m sorry your honor, I’m a little nervous today,” he said.
Many of the potential jurors indicated that they had seen video or images of an incident at the center of the case: Mr. Combs assaulting Ms. Ventura inside a hotel in 2016, which was captured on security footage that was leaked to CNN last year. Judge Subramanian ruled that some footage depicting the assault could be shown at trial.
“It was upsetting to watch,” one potential juror said, “but I don’t know the full story.”
New Yorkers called for jury selection in the case were confronted with questions that are commonly asked in criminal cases, including whether they had ever been the victim of a crime or had experience in law enforcement. As is typical in a case involving allegations of abuse, potential jurors were asked if they had experiences with sexual assault or domestic violence.
Some of the questions were more tailored to the case. Did potential jurors have experiences with “artists in the hip-hop community” that could jeopardize their impartiality? How about allegations surrounding “commercial sex workers,” which is a core part of the government’s case?
Potential jurors were asked to read through a long list of people and places that could be mentioned in the case to see if they recognized them. Some were family members or former employees of Mr. Combs; others were big-name celebrities whose connections to the case is unclear.
Before the potential jurors entered the courtroom, Judge Subramanian noted that the list of names on this case — which is expected to last eight weeks — was particularly long. “I felt like I was reading an appendix from ‘The Lord of the Rings,’” he said.
Twelve jurors, plus alternates, are expected to be selected for the case this week. Opening statements are scheduled for May 12.
