Sean “Diddy” Combs seeks to dismiss some of the claims in one of the sexual assault cases against him.
In new legal documents obtained by TMZ, lawyers for the media mogul are claiming that Combs can’t be sued under certain laws, because the laws weren’t in effect at the time of the alleged incident involving plaintiff Joi Dickerson-Neal. The motion to dismiss the claims was filed in a New York Court on Friday, according to the Associated Press.
Neal filed her lawsuit against Diddy in November, claiming that he drugged and sexually assaulted her while on a date in 1991. Per Rolling Stone, Diddy allegedly filmed the act. A male friend of the accuser reportedly revealed to her that he had watched the alleged tape “along with other men.”
Although his lawyers maintain their client's innocence by claiming he didn’t commit the acts in the first place, TMZ reports that Diddy’s legal counsel are contesting the claims based on laws enacted after the alleged assault, such as the New York Services for Victims of Human Trafficking Law, which didn’t go into effect until 2007, or 16 years after the alleged incident took place.
Other laws being contested by Diddy’s legal reps include the New York State Revenge Porn Law (codified in 2019), the New York City Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law (passed in 2000), and New York City’s 2016 Revenge Porn Law.
As pointed out by the outlet, Diddy’s lawyers aren’t challenging the first two counts of assault and battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress, as these claims are based on common law principles and do not rely on specific statutes.
Additionally, Diddy’s legal team argues that Joi cannot sue Bad Boy Records nor Bad Boy Entertainment because these entities did not exist at the time of the alleged incident.
According to Rolling Stone, Neal is seeking unspecified damages from Combs to “redress the injuries she has suffered as a result of being sexually harassed, abused, and a victim of revenge porn.”
