Current:Home > InvestFastexy:Sean 'Diddy' Combs seeks to dismiss $100M judgment in sexual assault case -TrueNorth Finance Path
Fastexy:Sean 'Diddy' Combs seeks to dismiss $100M judgment in sexual assault case
PredictIQ View
Date:2025-04-09 10:47:37
Sean "Diddy" Combs is Fastexyfighting back in court after the embattled rap mogul was ordered to pay $100 million to an alleged victim of sexual assault.
Combs, who is the subject of numerous sexual assault and related lawsuits, filed two emergency motions relating to the multimillion-dollar judgment in Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith's case against him Thursday, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY.
Cardello-Smith, a convict serving up to 75 years for 2008 and 2019 first-degree criminal sexual conduct and kidnapping charges, filed the civil suit against Diddy in June. He was granted the award, a default civil suit judgment, at a hearing on Monday in a Lenawee County Circuit Court in Michigan.
A default judgment is made when either party in a case fails to take action, either by not responding to a summons or failure to appear in court.
Diddy v. Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith:Rap mogul ordered to pay $100M in default judgment for alleged sexual assault
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
However, in Combs' filing to dismiss the judgment, attorneys for the Grammy-winning rapper claim he was never informed of Cardello-Smith's complaint. They also refute the Michigan inmate's allegations of sexual assault by Combs.
"This is a frivolous lawsuit against a prominent businessman, based on obvious fabrications, filed by a convicted rapist and serial litigant with an overactive imagination and a thirst for fame," the motion reads.
"(Combs), who was never served with this lawsuit, learned about (Cardello-Smith) and this action for the first time three days ago, when media outlets reported that this court had entered a $100 million default judgment against him."
Inmate's assault allegations are 'objectively unbelievable,' Diddy's lawyers say
Cardello-Smith previously claimed Combs assaulted him following a hotel after-party in Detroit in June 1997.
While hanging out with Combs and two other women in a private hotel room, Cardello-Smith alleged Combs offered him a drink, which purportedly caused him to lose consciousness. Cardello-Smith said he later awoke to find himself bleeding and in pain.
Combs' attorneys have slammed Cardello-Smith's allegations as "objectively unbelievable."
"(Cardello-Smith) alleges that he was assaulted in 1997, but he cannot keep his story straight as to where this supposedly occurred," Combs' filing reads. "In his complaint, (Cardello-Smith) alleges that the assault occurred after he met Mr. Combs at a restaurant in Detroit. In his pretrial statement, however, (Cardello-Smith) alleges that the assault occurred in Adrian, Michigan."
Sean 'Diddy' Combs legal issues:A timeline of allegations and the rapper's life, career
Cardello-Smith claimed he filed a police report after the alleged assault and accused Combs of paying "Detroit and Monroe police officers to keep it hidden." He also provided a copy of a 1997 "agreement of silence and confidentiality" allegedly signed by Combs, himself and others, including Michigan officials and police officers.
Attorneys for Combs called Cardello-Smith's allegation of a confidentiality agreement a "fantastical conspiracy."
Sean 'Diddy' Combs files to dismiss inmate's restraining order
In a separate motion, Combs is seeking to remove the temporary restraining order Cardello-Smith was granted in Monday's default judgment.
Combs' lawyers claim the ruling on injunctive relief that authorized the restraining order was improper, citing numerous legal failings, including an alleged violation of Combs' constitutional rights.
"Because (Cardello-Smith) was not served with the summons, complaint and the injunction motion before the injunction order was entered, the injunction order acts as an ex parte pre-judgment attachment of (Combs') real property," the motion reads.
A legal proceeding performed "ex parte" is conducted only in the presence of one party.
"An ex parte pre-judgment attachment of real property to secure the payment of a potential judgment is unconstitutional," Combs' attorneys claim, "as it violates the due process rights of the party subject to attachment."
Contributing: Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAY
veryGood! (33427)
Related
- Behind on your annual reading goal? Books under 200 pages to read before 2024 ends
- This Summer’s Heatwaves Would Have Been ‘Almost Impossible’ Without Human-Caused Warming, a New Analysis Shows
- Kim Kardashian and Tristan Thompson Party in Miami After Watching Lionel Messi's MLS Debut
- Married To Medicine Star Quad Webb's 3-Year-Old Great Niece Drowns In Her Pool
- Bodycam footage shows high
- Inside Vanderpump Rules' Cast Trip to Tahoe—And Why Fans Think Tom Sandoval Is There
- Shakira Is Facing Another Tax Fraud Investigation in Spain
- Texas Cities Set Temperature Records in Unremitting Heat Wave
- Opinion: Gianni Infantino, FIFA sell souls and 2034 World Cup for Saudi Arabia's billions
- Carlee Russell Admits Kidnapping Was a Hoax
Ranking
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Sister Wives' Christine Brown Shares Engagement Photos With Her True Love David Woolley
- Activist Group ‘Names and Shames’ Cargill and Its Heirs to Keep Deforestation Promises
- The Melting Glaciers of Svalbard Offer an Ominous Glimpse of More Warming to Come
- SFO's new sensory room helps neurodivergent travelers fight flying jitters
- HGTV's Erin Napier Shares Video of Husband Ben After He Got Hardcore About Health and Fitness
- TikToker AJ Clementine Undergoes Vocal Feminization Surgery
- How Selena Gomez Became the Mental Health Champion We All Needed
Recommendation
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
Why Julian Sands' Cause of Death Has Been Ruled Undetermined
How the Hollywood Strikes Will Affect New Seasons of Law & Order and One Chicago Shows
Gisele Bündchen's Look-Alike Daughter Vivian Is All Grown Up as Model Celebrates 43rd Birthday
McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
True Thompson and Chicago West Mischievously Pay Tribute to Moms Khloe Kardashian and Kim Kardashian
See Chris Hemsworth's Heartwarming Birthday Message to Partner in Crime Elsa Pataky
Why Zendaya Will Be MIA From the 2023 Venice Film Festival