A Black male juror was kicked off the Sean “Puffy” Combs jury as it becomes more apparent that federal prosecutions will not get a conviction against him.
Combs, 55, was indicted in September on charges of sex trafficking, conspiracy, racketeering, arson, kidnapping, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He pleaded not guilty.
According to reports, a Black male juror, known as Juror No. 6, was dismissed by the judge after he gave inconsistent statements about his address. The 41-year-old man who works for New York’s Department of Corrections, initially said he lived in the Bronx.
He later casually mentioned to a court staffer that he moved to New Jersey to be with his fiancée and child. His New York driver’s license showed an address in the Bronx where he still received his mail.
He was replaced by an alternate juror, a 57-year-old white male who lives with his wife and children in Westchester County.
On Friday, Combs reacted angrily to the judge’s decision to dismiss the juror. The man is one of only 2 Black males on the jury. On Friday, Combs’ lawyers asked for a mistrial if the man was dismissed.
The lawyers said prosecutors used seven of their nine strikes to remove Black jurors from the jury pool. They argued that removing the seated juror over his residency issue would be “discriminatory.”
Judge Arun Subramanian said he would make his decision over the weekend. On Monday, he dismissed the juror for violating court policies.
The defense objected to a second juror, but Judge Subramanian said that juror does not appear to be linked to the dismissed juror.
