Law&Crime Sidebar - Jay-Z Accused of Raping Teen at P. Diddy Party: Lawsuit

Episode Date: December 9, 2024

Attorney Tony Buzbee filed an amended complaint on behalf of a woman who says she was raped at a party held by Sean “Diddy” Combs in 2000. “Celebrity A” has now been identified as Shawn Carter, better known as Jay-Z. The rapper blasted Buzbee and the lawsuit, calling the lawsuit blackmail. Law&Crime’s Jesse Weber has all the details from the updated civil action.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: Download the FREE Upside App at https://upside.app.link/sidebar to get an extra 25 cents back for every gallon on your first tank of gas.HOST:Jesse Weber: https://twitter.com/jessecordweberLAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokeVideo Editing - Michael Deininger and Christina FalconeScript Writing & Producing - Savannah Williamson & Juliana BattagliaGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this Law and Crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. We have quite the updates for you in the Sean Combs story. Jay-Z has just been named in a lawsuit as the previously unidentified celebrity who allegedly raped a 13-year-old girl. Also, the ex-wife of an NHL player has been revealed as another Combs accuser and the back-and-forth between prosecutors and Combs' lawyers continues. We are going to break it all down for you right now. Welcome to Sidebar. Presented by Law and Crime, I'm Jesse Weber. I'll be the first to tell you. It can be hard to keep track of all of the updates that are

happening in the Sean Diddy Combs Legal Saga. There are a lot of moving parts that's happening really fast, especially recently. So what we figured we would do is compile a list of some of the major developments that are happening in this story. And remember, this all comes as Sean Combs, sits in the Metropolitan Detention Center out in Brooklyn, New York, after being denied bail a third time as he waits trial next year on sex trafficking, racketeering, and prostitution charges. The man accused of engaging in a scheme going on for years where he allegedly abused, threatened, and coerced women to fulfill his sexual desires and operated a criminal enterprise engaged in all sorts of illicit activity. Prosecutors say that includes sex trafficking, kidnapping, arson, forced labor, obstruction. now our first update is massive this is huge because you remember when there was all this talk about who else could be implicated in these allegations who else will be named when it

comes to Sean Combs alleged misdeeds well it turns out one big name has just come to the surface jZ Sean Carter that's right the rapper and entrepreneur has just been identified as that unnamed celebrity in a lawsuit that we covered right here on sidebar a few weeks ago Actually, he has just been named as a defendant now in that lawsuit. You might recall there was this lawsuit that was filed again, Sean Combs back in October, where an unnamed Jane Doe alleges that back on September 7, 2000, when she was just 13 years old, she was taken to a video music awards, VMA's after party, which was 20 minutes away from the event in New York. And at this party, she claims that she took a drink, she started feeling woozy, lightheaded,

She makes the claim that she may have been drugged, and then she tries to find a place to lie down, and what she thought was an empty bedroom. She said that is when Sean Combs, along with a male and female celebrity, entered the room. And Combs allegedly grabbed her and said, you are ready to party. Well, now, Celebrity A, who was that unnamed celebrity, has been identified as Sean Carter. This is a part of a newly filed amended complaint. And it reads, Combs then threw plaintiff toward a wall. causing plaintiff to fall. Plaintiff got up and stumbled, at which point Combs grabbed her again

and threw her on the bed. At that point, Carter began removing plaintiff's clothes as she grew more and more disoriented. The complaint says, and I won't get into graphic detail, but Jay-Z raped this teen. And then it goes on to say that Diddy allegedly raped her too, that they took turns. And she claims that she actually fought back, hit Combs in the neck, was able to grab her clothes and run out of the room. Incredibly disturbing allegations. And she is suing both men under the New York motivated gender violence protection act, which is a law that has been used by other accusers against Sean Combs. And it allows for someone to sue against their attacker who commits some sort of violent act upon them. It doesn't have to be sexual per se, but it has to be motivated by their

gender. And it allows somebody to sue until February 2025. So even older claims, say something from 2000 can be brought forth now. Actually, here's what it says in the complaint. The requirement that the crime of violence be committed because of gender are on the basis of gender and do at least in part to an animus based on the victim's gender is satisfied because defendants Combs and Carter forced minor plaintiff to engage in a sexual interaction without consent. Jane Doe could not effectively consent because of her age. The non-consensual sexual touching of a minor herein presented a serious risk of physical injury and in fact caused such injury. gender animus inheres when consent is absent.

Hey, before we go any further, I want to quickly thank our sponsor Upside for helping us produce this Sean Combs episode. Now, Upside is great if you don't know what it is. It is a free app that helps you get cash back when you buy gas and groceries and food. This is real cashback. It's money that appears in your Upside app that you transfer right into your bank account. So look here. I used Upside to find a gas station.

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and you'll get an extra 25 cents back on every gallon on your first tank of gas. And I will also tell you that in this lawsuit, it seems to state or allege that Carter, JZ, is not only allegedly a player in this incident, but that he could be included in other situations because at the very beginning of the complaint, it reads,

Combs has been allowed for years to conduct himself in this manner without any consequences. He believes he is above the law. He is not. His close friend, Sean Carter, has been with Combs during many such instances described herein. Both perpetrators must face justice. And the lawsuit also doubles down on how close Combs and Carter are. Because at one point, it reads, the two are apparently so close that Combs stated in 2023 that Carter is the only person other than Combs' mother who is allowed to call him by his legal. first name of Sean. Now, this whole lawsuit is significant for several reasons. First of all,

this lawsuit was filed by Tony Busby. This is that Texas attorney who claims to represent over a hundred alleged victims of Sean Combs. And he indicated in the past that he would name names. And there was reporting, particularly by TMZ, that high profile people had reached out to him to settle claims so that they wouldn't be listed in lawsuits. They wouldn't be named in lawsuits. Well, With that in mind, take a listen to what Jay-Z had to say because he released the statement after the filing of this lawsuit. And it reads in part, quote, my lawyer received a blackmail attempt called a demand letter from a lawyer named Tony Busby.

What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle. No, sir, it had the opposite effect. It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a very public fashion. So no, I will not give you one red penny. These allegations are so heinous in nature that I implore you to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one, whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away. Would you not agree?

These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case. This lawyer, who I've done a bit of research on, seems to have a pattern of these types of theatrics. He goes on to say, my only heartbreak is for my family. My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press can ask questions about the nature of these claims and explain the cruelty and greed of people. I mourn yet another loss of innocence. He continues, my heart and support goes out to true victims in the world who have to watch how their life story is dressed in costume for profitability by this ambulance chaser in a cheap suit. You have made a terrible error in judgment

thinking that all celebrities are the same. I'm not from your moral world. I'm a young man who made it out of the project of Brooklyn. We don't play these types of games. We have very strict codes and honor. We protect children. You seem to exploit people for personal gain. Only your network of conspiracy theorists, fake physics, will believe the idiotic claims you have levied against me that, if not for the seriousness, surrounding harm to kids, would be laughable. I look forward to showing you just how different I am. Now, clearly, in my opinion, this was a pre-planned response. He had to have known that this lawsuit was coming. Because again, if you take these allegations is true, if you're taking what he's saying is true. And by the way, Busby did

indicate that Carter received a letter from him requesting a mediation. He knew negotiations broke down if there were any kind of negotiations and that this lawsuit would be filed. So it appears that this response was definitely planned in advance. And he's going to fight it. He's going to fight it. Now, something interesting to note when Sean Carter says that Tony Busby is an ambulance chaser, that he threw out this demand letter, that he was trying to essentially extort him, Busby himself has been sued. He has been sued by an unnamed high-profile public figure, someone apparently connected or friends with Sean Combs, who alleged that Busby, quote, shamelessly tried to extort him by threatening to file a lawsuit against him

unless he pays up, claims that Busby threatened him with a lawsuit that was filled with entirely fabricated and malicious allegations of sexual assault. So again, something to think about as we hear about these Tony Busby lawsuits and we think about Jay-Z's response. So Jay-Z is not backing down, at least from this statement, having said that, while he is completely innocent. You do have to wonder now whether this lawsuit has been filed, whether other lawsuits will come down the pike. That's what happened with Sean Combs. But to be clear about something, while this is essentially an alleged crime, what's being discussed, this is a

lawsuit. This is a civil case. The burden of proof is much lower, much tougher to bring criminal charges, especially when you're dealing with a claim that's 24 years old. But also, I should tell you, given the time frame, this could be beyond the statute of limitations to bring a state criminal charge. And I'm not sure based on this fact pattern alone, whether a federal crime would trigger. But again, whatever it is, these are allegations. Either way, these are allegations. By the way, in response to Jay-Z, Tony Busby just posted something on X, formerly Twitter, that is very interesting. And it makes you wonder if whether or not Jay-Z is that unnamed plaintiff, because he writes, regarding the Jay-Z case in his efforts to silence my clients, Mr. Carter previously

denied being the one who sued me and my firm. He filed his frivolous case under a pseudonym. What he fails to say in his recent statement is my firm sent his lawyer a demand letter on behalf of an alleged victim, and that victim never demanded a penny from him. Instead, she only sought a confidential mediation. Since I sent the letter on her behalf, Mr. Carter has not only sued me, but he has tried to bully and harass me and this plaintiff. His conduct has had the opposite impact. She is emboldened. I'm very proud of her resolve. As far as the the allegations and the complaint filed, we will let the filing speak for itself and will litigate the facts in court, not the media. Now, we are going to monitor what happens with

this Jay-Z situation. But as I said, that is not the only update we have to discuss, especially in terms of identities being revealed. Why? Because we have learned the identity of one of the Jane Does who sued Sean Combs. This was back in December 2023. This is one of the initial lawsuits. I think it was the fifth lawsuit that Sean Combs had. faced. And this was after Cassandra Ventura had first filed her sexual assault lawsuit against Sean Combs the month before in November of 2023. This set the whole ball rolling on all of the many lawsuits that he now faces from dozens of alleged victims. And of course, which also seemingly led to the criminal charges that he now faces. But that accuser has been

identified now as Anna Kane. Anna Kane is the ex-wife of NHL star Avander Kane from the Edmonton Oilers. And she just filed an amended complaint where she is now named as the plaintiff. And let's remember what she's accusing Sean Combs of. In her lawsuit originally filed on December 6, 2023, she claims that 20 years earlier back in 2003, when she was only 17 years old, in the 11th grade, she claims she was sex trafficked and gang raped by Sean Combs, Harvey Pierre, this is the president of Bad Boy Entertainment Holdings, and an unidentified third assailant. And more specifically, she alleges that she met Pierre and this third person at a lounge in Detroit, Michigan. Pierre, she says, smoke, crack cocaine and then forced her to

perform oral sex on him. Later on, she alleges that he convinced her to accompany him by private jet to New Jersey, where they all go to Sean Combs' recording studio. And from there, she claims she was applied with drugs and alcohol, was incredibly inebriated, and as I mentioned, was gang raped by all three men. And this included while she allegedly said, stop. And by the way, in the complaint, there were even photos that were embedded. And it was of this woman with a blurred out face. Now, it seems to be that was Kane. And she's in this recording studio. In fact, in one photo, she is with Sean Combs sitting on his lap. Now, why was she revealed? The simple answer, the judge overseeing this case forced her to reveal her identity. U.S. District Court

judge Jessica G.L. Clark ruled that Cain couldn't proceed with this case anonymously anymore, and while understanding that revealing her identity could, quote, have significant impact on her, particularly given the graphic and disturbing allegations in this case, Clark also wrote in her order, the court cannot rely on generalized, uncorroborated claims that disclosure would harm plaintiff to justify her anonymity. Without more specific support, plaintiff fails to overcome the prejudice to defendants and public interest factors implicated here. Now, we've seen this reasoning. In fact, we saw this in another Sean Combs case where another accuser was ordered to reveal herself.

The general idea is that while there are certain circumstances by which an accuser or a victim of sexual assault could remain anonymous, could file a lawsuit and continue a lawsuit under a pseudonym, you need to explain what particular harm would happen if your identity was revealed. Otherwise, it's not fair. Combs has a right to confront his accuser, to research that person, especially since the accuser has chosen to. to file the lawsuit. That person has put their own credibility into issue. Combs has a right to challenge that. And it's different than a criminal case where victims or alleged victims are prosecution witnesses and they don't necessarily want to testify per se or choose to testify per se. This was her case. She sued him. In other words, then if that wasn't the case, any sexual assault accuser could sue someone anonymously. And is that necessarily fair?

Now, what is significant about this is that Combs apparently put the pressure on Kane to reveal herself. And of course, that could have resulted in Kane dropping the suit, right? If the accuser doesn't want to tell the world who they are, this is very, very sensitive details. They may just drop the lawsuit if they can't remain anonymous. But she seems to be moving forward nonetheless. In fact, her attorney, Doug Wigdor, shared a statement from her to TMZ saying, I had hoped to use a pseudonym and pursuing justice for what happened to me as a teenager.

Defendant's demand that I used my name was an attempt to intimidate me, but I am not intimidated. I am prepared to proceed and hold accountable those who have harmed me. And by the way, talking about Kane having to reveal herself, you have to wonder if in the other lawsuits where there are other Jane Does, including the one now against Jay-Z, if that plaintiff is forced to reveal her identity, will she continue that lawsuit against Jay-Z? Sean Combs? We'll see. By the way, I should tell you when it comes to these sexual assault allegations, Combs has adamantly denied having any involvement or partaking in anything like this.

In fact, when it came to Kane's suit, back when it was filed in December, Combs had already been hit, by the way, with multiple lawsuits at the time. He released the following statement. Enough is enough for the last couple of weeks. I have sat silently and watched people try to assassinate my character, destroy my reputation, and my legacy. Sickening allegations have been made against me by individuals looking at. for a quick payday. Let me be absolutely clear. I did not do any of the awful things being

alleged. I will fight for my name, my family, and for the truth. And Pierre also released a statement adamantly denying the accusation saying this is a tale of fiction I have never participated in, witness nor heard of anything like this ever. These disgusting allegations are false and a desperate attempt for financial gain. I will vigorously protect my reputation and defend my name. Those who know me recognize that these claims are not true. By the way, before we move on one more update with respect to Ms. Kane's lawsuit. The claims against the corporate defendants in this lawsuit, like bad boy entertainment holdings and daddy's house recordings, they were dismissed.

Now, I'm not going to bog you down with the legal reasoning behind it, just to say that a change in the law that was being used to hold the companies liable for what Combs allegedly did couldn't be retroactively applied. So that's a loss for Kane because in lawsuits, the corporate defendants, they're the ones that have the deep pockets, right? they have the significant money, although we're talking about Sean Combs here. But otherwise, her lawsuit proceeds and there will be a hearing on January 9th, 2025. So we'll see what happens next.

But now moving on to some more updates, more back and forth between prosecutors in Combs' criminal case and his lawyers, something we have to talk about. And one issue involves a suppression hearing, meaning a hearing where Combs' defense counsel will try to have evidence not allowed into his criminal trial. Now, in a December 4th filing with the court, the defense brings up once again that, issue that we had talked about before on cyber where these writings, these papers from Sean Combs detention unit at the MDC were photographed by a Bureau of Prisons investigator during a sweep for contraband at the facility. Combs' lawyers had argued that potentially attorney-client and work product privilege materials were photographed and they were shared with the prosecution and that this is a big no-no. And they also allege that the government was improperly monitoring

Sean Combs' jail calls with families and his attorneys. And also, by the way, you remember that Judge Arun Subramanian denied Combs' bail for allegedly violating the BOP rules by engaging in three-way phone calls and using other inmates' phone access codes. Prosecutors had alleged that he did this to try to improperly reach out to witnesses and taint a future jury pool. But Suburmanian denied Sean Combs' bail. But anyway, Sean Combs' lawyers write in this December 4th filing, they write, the government exploited Mr. Combs' detention by engaging. in unfair and unconstitutional tactics that have interfered with his ability to work with his attorneys and make it impossible for his attorneys to provide effective assistance

of counsel. They write, this disturbing conduct is a blatant violation of Mr. Combs' rights. Prosecutors say the search was motivated by security concerns at MDC, but that is a false pretext. The purported purpose of the BOP sweep was to search for contraband, but since when is prison contraband photographed and left in place? were contraband, it would have been seized. That is not what Investigator 1 did here, leading to the inescapable conclusion that this was an intentional, targeted, and a legal search to discover any information that could give

the prosecutors a leg up against Mr. Combs, including his handwritten privilege notes, a roadmap to his defense. So they're basically saying, this sweep didn't have anything to do with just, you know, a pre-planned look at all contraband. This was specifically targeted at Sean Combs. That's what the argument seems to be. And they continue, the prosecutors knowingly, intentionally, and secretly took possession of the notes and then used them against Mr. Combs. They took the notes without following the agreed upon filter team procedure that is supposed to ensure that the case team is not tainted by access to privilege information.

By the way, a filter team is this independent examiners who look through material and take out anything that might be privileged. Anyway, they continue. They then appended clearly privileged portions of the notes to their bail opposition to support continued detention. This was when prosecutors said that these writings in his cell showed Combs was improperly reaching out to a witness in the case. They used this as evidence to oppose his bail. And the defense writes, it is impossible to know what else the government has done with these notes. Indeed, the prosecution has refused to disclaim using the notes to further its investigation going forward. They go on this entire sequence of events, even based on the facts known to date, is shocking and outrageous government conduct.

The government has intentionally violated Mr. Combs' attorney-client privilege and sixth amendment right to counsel by invading the defense camp and unjustifiably interfere with relationship with counsel and ability to defend. Mr. Combs cannot possibly receive a fair trial if he is not permitted to confer privately and confidentially with his counsel and others working at the direction and to take and keep notes of his trial preparation. The search also violated the Fourth Amendment and Mr. Combs' Fifth Amendment due process rights. So now they're asking the court to step in. And they write, we request discovery in a hearing to determine the extent of the violations to establish procedures to minimize prejudice going forward and to ensure that Mr. Combs receives a fair trial. The court should also order other necessary relief, including but not limited to, suppression of the notes and any fruits of the illegal search, meaning it can't be used at trial, directing that a special master conduct privilege review in lieu of the filter team going forward, the disqualification of any and all prosecutors tainted by access to the privilege materials. while that's a big one just telling the prosecution team they can't be part of the case and ordering the government to stop monitoring Mr. Combs' communications with the defense team

and depending on the evidence seduced at the hearing, dismissal of the indictment, meaning their conduct was so bad, this indictment should be thrown out. This whole criminal case should be thrown out. Now, I should tell you that Judge Suburbanian has already heard some of these arguments in a prior hearing. And actually, he instructed the prosecutors to destroy the copies of Sean Combs' notes they had in their possession. I will say, though, it wasn't like it was all pro defense. He wasn't too happy with the defense either because he said that they weren't entirely accurate with him about what was and wasn't labeled legal in Sean Combs' unit.

Now, that is not the only recent back and forth between prosecutors and the defense. Another update revolves around Combs' use of a laptop. You see, given the sheer amount of evidence and material in this case for Sean Combs to review, and, by the way, he has a constitutional right to prepare for his defense, prosecutors arranged for a laptop to be provided to him at the MDC. However, there were certain parameters that prosecutors put forward in terms of where he could view the materials and when he could view them. For instance, they said he couldn't view the materials in his own unit while in the

presence of other inmates because they say there is sealed information on that laptop. And that includes the names of alleged victims and witnesses. This is a security and privacy risk. So the prosecutors offered that he'll only be provided with the laptop in the unit's video teleconference room during select times when legal staff is available and when that room is not otherwise being used during other inmates' legal calls, or he'll only be provided with the laptop in the legal visiting room between the hours of 8 a.m. and 3.30 p.m. But not both. He can't have both options. Now, Sean Combs' lawyers objected to this. They said that he is being selectively treated unfairly from other inmates, that given these limited amounts of times, he's going to have to choose between either reviewing the laptop and visiting with his attorneys.

They say this situation is untenable, and that there's not this security risk that prosecutors claim because there's no reason to believe Sean Combs would share these sensitive materials with other inmates. And also, there was this whole back and forth about whether Combs could use the laptop to take notes, too. defense says he has a right to take legal notes on the laptop prosecutors say no that goes beyond what's allowed with the laptop and the defense also argued that the mdc needs to stop sending attorney visitation forms to prosecutors meaning letting them know when his lawyers are visiting him

and they say that violates attorney client privilege prosecutors countered they said no it doesn't the fact that he met with his attorneys that's not privileged information and by the way we have a right to know considering sean combs is the one who really made an issue of how often he meets with his lawyers while at the MDC. A little bit of a back and forth there between prosecutors and defense counsel. But I have one more update I got to talk to you about regarding the MDC. You see, according to reporting from Fox News, we may know what Sean Combs will be doing during Christmas, the first Christmas that he has spent behind bars.

Apparently during the holiday, he and other inmates can take part in a three-on-three basketball tournament, play cards, play dominoes, play soccer. Also on the dinner menu for Christmas Day, there is reportedly a cornish hen, macaroni and cheese, cranberry sauce, dinner rolls, a holiday dessert, just in case you wanted to know what Sean Combs may be up to behind bars, quite the fall from grace for the once-renowned music star. But look, as I've said before, and I'll say it again, he is innocent until proven guilty, okay? He has not even been found liable in any of these sexual assault lawsuits as of yet. have to be clear about that. So we will see where this case goes and we will see how this story proceeds. All right, everybody, that's all we have for you right now here on Sidebar.

Thank you so much for joining us. And as always, please subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Jesse Weber. Speak to you next time. of this long crime series, ad-free right now on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.