Jury selection in the long-awaited trial begins on Monday – coincidentally the same day as the Met Gala, the glittering charity event where Combs was once a mainstay.
The process got under way earlier this week, as potential jurors were given questionnaires to discover what they already know about the case, part of an effort towards finding 12 people (and six alternates) who can be impartial, despite intense media coverage of the case so far.
Prosecutors and defence aim to screen up to 150 people before opening statements are given on 12 May.
The trial is expected to last at least eight weeks, with Combs’ former partner Cassandra Ventura among those expected to give evidence.
Ventura, an R&B singer professionally known as Cassie, sued Combs in November 2023, accusing him of rape and serial physical abuse during their decade-long professional and romantic relationship, which he denied.
She settled the case just one day after suing – but CNN later broadcast surveillance footage showing Combs hitting, kicking and dragging Ventura in the lobby of a California hotel.
Combs’ lawyers had tried to get the footage dismissed from the trial, arguing that it had been sped up and the events were shown out of sequence – although they did not deny their clients behaviour.
However, Judge Subramanian ruled last week that the footage could be admitted.
