Category Entertainment News

P Diddy’s trial verdict is looming, and there were some shocking events that occurred in court on Tuesday, from the rapper’s cryptic comment to his mother to unanticipated jury behavior.

The fate of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is expected to be revealed this week as the 12 jurors in his sex-trafficking trial continue their deliberations. The embattled rapper, 55, is charged with sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution.

Combs, who denies all charges, could spend the rest of his life behind bars if he is found guilty. Deliberations began on Monday, but things took an unexpected turn when the jury passed two notes to the presiding judge.

The jury heard from 34 witnesses, including former flames of Kid Cudi and Combs, during the trial that started on May 5 at the Federal District Court in Lower Manhattan.

As the disgraced star’s verdict looms, we take a look at the biggest bombshells from the second day of court this week.

Diddy’s five-word address to his mother

Before leaving the court, Diddy whispered to his children, who were behind him in the second row.

He said, “I’ll be alright, my mother,” after which he had leant in and asked him a question. Before tapping his chest, “Love you,”

Count 1 jury unable to reach a verdict

At 4.05 p.m. local time, the jury wrote to the judge: “We have decided on counts 2, 3, 4, and 5.” Because of jurors with unsupportable viewpoints on both sides, we are unable to reach a verdict on count one.

The judge should encourage the jury to continue deliberating, according to both the prosecution and defense attorneys. The defense, according to Marc Agnifilo, wants the judge to summon the jury and instruct them to continue their deliberations. They are currently modifying the instruction’s language.

The jury is unable to reach a decision on count one because it chose to decide on four of the five charges, which are counts two, three, four, and five. The charges against Diddy are:

• Count 1: Racketeering conspiracy
• Victim 1 (Cassie) is the subject of Count 2 – Sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion.
• Count 3 – Transportation to engage in prostitution in relation to victim 1 (Cassie) and professional sex workers
• Count 4 – Sex trafficking perpetrated by force, fraud, or coercion (victim 2).
• Count 5 – Transportation to engage in prostitution, relating to Victim 2 (Jane Doe) and professional sex workers

The maximum sentence for count one is life in prison. In addition, counts two and four serve a maximum sentence of life and a minimum sentence of 15 years. Three and five count for ten years in prison.

Judge demands that the jury continue to deliberate.

Judge Subramanian and the attorneys were discussing how to respond when the jury notes that they were unable to reach a verdict in whole.

When responding to the defense team’s suggested instruction, Subramanian said, “There’s not much there.” He added that quoting the jury to “keep deliberating” would not be in line with Count One’s note, which stated “unpersuadable opinions.”

Marc Agnifilo, Diddy’s attorney, claimed that the jury should have been more productive and efficient because they didn’t need any more encouragement to continue deliberating. Subramanian also asserted that the government’s proposal is not an Allen charge as such but reiterates a section of the jury’s instructions regarding the duty to deliberate.

What are the two notes that the jury accepted, and why it might bring good news for Diddy.

The jury’s two notes were passed to the presiding judge, giving the proceedings an unexpected twist that started on Monday.

Before the jury’s initial hearing, the judge’s lengthy 61-page instructions were difficult to understand, according to the first note. According to Mitch Epner, a New York-based attorney and former prosecutor, the jury’s note-passing may be a positive sign for Combs.

Speaking to the BBC, he said: “First, it is unusual for the jurors to send a note to the judge this early, other than asking for logistical help. Second, this note indicates that there may already be a breakdown in the deliberative process,”.

Juror number 25’s specific concerns and their difficulty following the judge’s instructions have not yet been made public, and a unanimous decision is required for a conviction.

Epner argued that while a jury can be dismissed for not participating in discussions, they cannot be removed simply for coming to a “fixed conclusion about the proper verdict.”

If you’ve been the victim of sexual assault, you can access help and resources via www.rapecrisis.org.uk or calling the national telephone helpline on 0808 802 9999

One star sign feels indifferent in today’s horoscope for Wednesday, July 2, as another improves their health

One star sign’s routine is interrupted while another is distracted, and it’s Wednesday.

There are 12 zodiac signs – Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces – and the horoscopes for each can give you the lowdown on what your future holds, be it in work, your love life, your friends and family or more.

These daily forecasts have been compiled by astrologer Russell Grant, who has been reading star signs for over 50 years. From Aries through to Pisces, here’s what today could bring for your horoscope – and what you can do to be prepared.

Aries (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

You are unable to fulfill commitments you made to your friends or work. When your focus is on domestic issues, it’s challenging to finish assignments and manage projects effectively. Make time to fit these pressures in rather than repress them.

Taurus (Apr 21 – May 21)

Don’t oppose workplace changes that appear to have taken place unanticipated. Try your best to adapt and follow the flow. You have a chance to discover fresh opportunities for the future. Additionally, these changes will make your job less monotonous.

Gemini (May 22 – June 21)

In interviews and test scenarios, the goal is to leave a strong impression. apply diplomacy and charm to situations. Avoid tidbits about coworkers, family, or anyone else for that matter during typical day-to-day activities. Let your optimism manifest itself.

Cancer (June 22 – July 23)

When your friends are looking for someone to share their difficulties with, you typically have a talent for doing so. You typically show kindness and encouragement in response. However, today feels completely different. You might find yourself distant and uninterested in their concerns.

Leo (July 24 – Aug 23)

Your work is hampered by family obligations. Your persistent lateness might be criticized for your punctuality. You must let your family know that you have other interests. Some discussions should be moved forward.

Virgo (Aug 24 – Sept 23)

Your body should be heard. A new routine that emphasizes fitness and nutrition is now necessary. Consider exploring herbal remedies that might assist with any physical problems you may be currently experiencing. Let your spouse or housemate know that you have noticed their recent devotion to you.

Libra (Sept 24 – Oct 23)

Take some time to reflect on your life at first. Put plans you’ve been working on in order to start new projects into practice rather than just categorising your experiences. Accept that you have some excellent suggestions for resolving issues. Your potential needs to be seen by your supervisors.

Scorpio (Oct 24 – Nov 22)

Your routine at home or at work has been completely disrupted, and nothing has turned out as planned in recent days, which is unusual. The fact that today seems to signal a return to normality will be comforting. Your first action will be to start with researching private matters.

Sagittarius (Nov 23 – Dec 21)

Before you start your day, give yourself a second thought. You could find yourself in a difficult situation if you don’t pay attention to what you say to people. Instead, concentrate on working in the background and catching up on paperwork.

Capricorn (Dec 22 – Jan 20)

Discuss issues with a trusted friend about personal matters. Talking through your problems can help you come to an end to the issues that have been bothering you, which will relieve you greatly. Use caution because you appear to be easily distracted when using machinery.

Aquarius (Jan 21 – Feb 19)

The number of opportunities to participate in new activities seems limitless. There is less need to try to please demanding people and you now have more freedom to do what you want. Requesting a second opinion might be helpful if there is a question you aren’t sure about.

Pisces (Feb 20 – Mar 20)

Following the success of Louis Theroux’s series called Boybands Forever, the journalist is planning a girl group version, but one iconic group has reportedly shunned his approach

Louis Theroux is used to interviewing the best in the business. However, one band has reportedly shunned his advances to tell their story.

The popular journalist is creating a new bombshell BBC documentary on girlbands following on from last year’s successful production of Boybands Forever. It’s thought Louis had seen the iconic band as being instrumental in any production.

However, a TV insider has claimed that the quintet – made up of Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton, Melanie C, Melanie Brown MBE and Geri Horner – aren’t prepared to bare all just yet.

While last year’s boyband version saw Robbie Williams open up on his turbulent time in Take That, the source says the Girl Power group aren’t looking to follow suit.

Talking to the Sun, a source said: “The difference is that the Spice Girls are fast approaching 30 years since the release of their debut single Wannabe and have a string of projects in the pipeline.

“Many of the issues that Robbie brought up on Boybands Forever were wholly justifiable, and most viewers sympathised with his situation when he was in Take That.

“But none of the Spice Girls want to do the same, and they feel it wouldn’t be fair on their loyal fans to spoil the magic of Girl Power so close to their anniversary year. They want 2026 to be a moment when they celebrate the group’s achievements. ”

While the Spice Girls are reportedly steering clear of the offering, other groups from the era are expected to feature. With it thought chats will be conducted face to face, members of groups such as Eternal, Atomic Kitten, Girls Aloud, Sugababes and All Saints are rumoured to be taking part.

Boybands Forever, which was released at the back end of last year, was a series that focused on boybands of the 90s and early 2000s. Among those who featured, as well as Robbie Williams, was Simon Cowell.

Prior to its release, Louis said of the series: “It involves some of the icons of modern British pop – and we see them through their highs and lows. ” He added: “It’s how they came together, the experience of sudden fame, the opportunity and temptations that came their way, conflicts within the groups, between the groups, and between the boys and their managers.

“It’s a gripping fable about getting everything you dreamed of, and it not being what you imagined, centred on a generation of young men, and their managers, who were wildly successful and also immensely vulnerable, having the times of their lives and also in some cases cracking up. “

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A jury reached a partial verdict Tuesday in the sex trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, but has been unable to agree on the most serious charge facing the music mogul — racketeering.

A note from the jury to Judge Arun Subramanian did not say whether the verdict on four of the five counts against the 55-year-old Combs was guilty or not guilty.

“We have reached a verdict on counts 2, 3, 4, and 5. We are unable to reach a verdict on count 1 as we have jurors with unpersuadable opinions on both sides,” the jury note said.

The judge instructed the jury to continue deliberations on the racketeering charge, but dismissed them for the day and asked them to return on Wednesday.

Count One is the racketeering charge and accuses Combs of being the ringleader of a criminal organization that forced women into coercive sex marathons with escorts.

It carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.

In addition to racketeering, Combs faces two charges of sex trafficking and two charges of transportation for purposes of prostitution.

Combs’s star fell dramatically when his former partner of 11 years, the singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, filed a civil lawsuit accusing him of disturbing sexual, physical and emotional abuse.

That case was settled out of court for $20 million, but it triggered an avalanche of similarly harrowing civil lawsuits and eventually criminal charges.

The seven-week trial included at times disturbing testimony — two women spoke of feeling forced into lurid sex parties, and some former employees told jurors of violent outbursts — along with thousands of pages of phone, financial and audiovisual records.

Central to the prosecution’s case is its accusation that Combs led a criminal enterprise of senior employees who “existed to serve his needs” and enforced his power with offenses including forced labor, drug distribution, kidnapping, bribery, witness tampering and arson.

But defense attorney Marc Agnifilo underscored that none of those individuals testified against Combs, nor were they named as co-conspirators.

Many witnesses were given immunity to avoid incriminating themselves.

To convict Combs on racketeering, jurors must find that prosecutors showed beyond reasonable doubt that he agreed with people within his organization to commit at least two of the eight crimes forming the racketeering charge.

The eight men and four women must reach a unanimous decision on each count.

READ ALSO: [‘Unlimited Power’] Testimony Against Sean Combs Tells Of Lurid Violence

‘Not a god’

Combs is charged with sex trafficking two women: Ventura and a woman who testified under the pseudonym Jane.

Both were in long-term relationships with Combs. And both testified of abuse, threats and coercive sex in wrenching detail.

But while his lawyers have conceded that Combs at times beat his partners, they insisted the domestic violence does not amount to sex trafficking or racketeering.

Agnifilo scoffed at the picture painted by prosecutors of a violent, domineering man who fostered “a climate of fear. ”

Combs is a “self-made, successful Black entrepreneur” who had romantic relationships that were “complicated” but consensual, Agnifilo said.

The defense dissected the accounts of Ventura and Jane and at times even mocked them, insisting the women were adults making free choices.

But in their final argument, prosecutors tore into the defense, saying Combs’s team had “contorted the facts endlessly. ”

Prosecutor Maurene Comey told jurors that by the time Combs had committed his clearest-cut offenses, “he was so far past the line he couldn’t even see it. ”

“In his mind he was untouchable,” Comey told the court. “The defendant never thought that the women he abused would have the courage to speak out loud what he had done to them. ”

“That ends in this courtroom,” she said. “The defendant is not a god. ”

The case of Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs nears its end, but jurors in the Lower Manhattan courtroom are yet to come to a decision on all five counts against the musician

The Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs verdict is set to be delivered in the coming days. The jury was expected to announce its decision on Tuesday after a second day of deliberation.

However, they have since gone home for the day after deciding on four of the five charges made against the rapper, 55. They had reached a decision regarding counts two, three, four, and five, but had remained unable to decide on count one.

At the end of Tuesday, Judge Arun Subramania instructed the jury to continue deliberating, saying: “I received your note that you have reached verdicts on counts two to five but not on count one. I ask at this time that you keep deliberating. “

The judge had indicated that he would instruct the jury to continue weighing the charge. This echoed the sentiments of prosecutors and Combs’ defence team who had claimed that just two days into deliberations was too soon to call time on trying to reach a verdict on all counts.

Combs has denied all charges made against him. He faces life in prison if found guilty. Now, as the six-week trial rolls over another day, we look at exactly what each count is.

• Count 1 – Racketeering conspiracy
• Count 2 – Sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion – pertains to Victim 1 (Cassie Ventura)
• Count 3 – Transportation to engage in prostitution relating to Victim 1 (Cassie) and commercial sex workers
• Count 4 – Sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion(relating to Jane Doe – Victim 2)
• Count 5 – Transportation to engage in prostitution, relating to Victim 2 (Jane Doe) and commercial sex workers

The jury has remained unable to decide on the biggest sentence. Count one carries the biggest sentence of the five counts, with the rapper potentially facing life in prison if found guilty on the count.

A note said the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the racketeering conspiracy charge because there were jurors with “unpersuadable views” on both sides. However, the judge remained undeterred as they were prepared to wait for a full verdict.

He said that while the jury has a right to deliver a partial verdict that is more of a last resort. And, due to the amount of time passed so far, he would rather give them more time and wait to have a full verdict.

Counts two and four both carry minimum sentences of 15 years. The maximum sentence on the counts is life. Counts three and five carry a maximum sentence of ten years.

The jurors will return to the court in Lower Manhattan on Wednesday, July 2, at 9am New York time, which is 2pm in the UK.

Former Little Mix star Jade Thirlwall has called being a part of the girl group a test as she opens up on the big different

Jade Thirlwall has revealed how difficult it was to rise to fame in a girl group. Fresh from a superb Glastonbury solo debut, the South Shields native, 32, has admitted being part of Little Mix was a big test.

The singer revealed how tough the girls had it when it came to trying to prove their worth in the industry. And she admitted that despite The X Factor providing a huge platform, coming from such a show often meant they needed to showcase their worth even more.

The Angel of My Dreams singer confessed it felt as though being in a girl band is the “ultimate boot camp on how to survive the music industry”. She explained that the girls always had to try to prove their credibility due to their set up and showcase exactly why they deserved their huge success.

Speaking to NME, Jade said: “Being in Little Mix really was the ultimate test of enduring that. Time and time again, we reinvented ourselves, and to be in a girl band that lasts for over 10 years is pretty remarkable. You don’t hear of that often.”

And she admitted her Little Mix career is something that she will always be proud of. However, she is now looking forward to putting her own stamp on her music. “Going into my solo music, it was like ‘OK, now I get to write just purely about my own experiences’, because in a girl band the topics have to be a bit more universal,” she said.

“On my own, though, it was important for me to express myself. ” Jade confessed, though, that the new chapter isn’t about her past being forgotten. Instead, she said: “That was the past, and I loved it, but now this is the new chapter. “

Jade’s explosive set at Worthy Farm was full of talking points as she put on a show to remember. As well as an energetic performance filled with a mix of solo and Little Mix bangers, Jade wasn’t afraid to let her feelings be heard.

Taking to the Woodsies stage on Saturday, she delivered a rousing rendition of her hit FUFN. The track, an acronym for ‘F*** you for now’, features a segment where the singer reels off a list of things she’d like to give the middle finger to.

And during the tune, she chanted: “Reform! Transphobia! Selling arms! Genocide! “, with the crowd echoing back a resounding “F**** you”.

She also fought back the tears, as she shared with the audience: “This song [Angel of My Dreams] is literally me as a song, so thank you for showing me that that’s enough. “

The hit anthem delves into the peaks and troughs of JADE’s 15-year career. In one emotive lyric, she sings: “Selling my soul to a SYCO, they say I’m so lucky”.

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