Diddy's Legal Defense Challenges Laws Applicable to 1991 Allegations
Sean “Diddy” Combs has taken action to dismiss certain claims in a sexual assault lawsuit brought against him by Joi Dickerson-Neal. The lawsuit, filed in November, alleges that Combs drugged and sexually assaulted Dickerson-Neal during a date in 1991. Dickerson-Neal claims that Diddy recorded the alleged incident and shared the explicit footage amongst people in the industry.
Central to Combs' defense strategy is the invocation of the statute of limitations principle. His legal team contends that certain claims, including those pertaining to revenge porn and human trafficking, cannot be pursued nor can he be held liable under specific laws that were not in effect at the time of the alleged incident. Among the laws contested are the New York Services for Victims of Human Trafficking Law, which was enacted in 2007, and the New York State Revenge Porn Law, codified in 2019.
While maintaining his innocence against the allegations, Combs' lawyers are focusing on challenging claims that rely on statutes enacted after the alleged assault. However, they are not contesting charges based on common law principles, such as assault and battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The lawsuit also targets Bad Boy Records and Bad Boy Entertainment, though Combs’ legal team argues that these entities did not exist at the time of the alleged incident and cannot be sued.
As reported by Rolling Stone, Joi Dickerson-Neal is seeking unspecified damages as legal “redress” from Combs for the purported harms she suffered.
