DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MS. SLAVIK:
MS. SLAVIK: Good afternoon, Mr. James.
DAVID JAMES: Good afternoon.
MS. SLAVIK: Could you please state and spell your name for the record.
DAVID JAMES: My name is David James. That is D-a-v-i-d J-a-m-e-s.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, why are you testifying here today?
DAVID JAMES: I've been subpoenaed twice.
MS. SLAVIK: Does that -- do the subpoenas you received obligate you to testify here today?
DAVID JAMES: They do, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: What specifically does the subpoena obligate you to do?
DAVID JAMES: To tell the truth.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James --
MS. SLAVIK: Excuse me. Ms. Foster, could you please publish what's in evidence as Government Exhibit 2A-101.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, do you recognize the individual in this photo?
DAVID JAMES: I do.
MS. SLAVIK: How do you -- Who is it?
DAVID JAMES: That's Mr. Combs.
MS. SLAVIK: What's his first name?
DAVID JAMES: Sean.
MS. SLAVIK: How do you know Mr. Combs?
DAVID JAMES: I was his personal assistant for two years.
MS. SLAVIK: Approximately when did you work as Mr. Combs' personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: From May 2007 to May 2009.
MS. SLAVIK: Ms. Foster, can you take this down and publish for the parties only what's marked for identification as Government Exhibit 2A-307.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, do you recognize the individual in this photo?
DAVID JAMES: Yes, I do.
MS. SLAVIK: Who is this?
DAVID JAMES: That is myself.
MS. SLAVIK: And is this a fair and accurate depiction of yourself?
DAVID JAMES: It is, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: The government moves to enter Government Exhibit 2A-307 into evidence.
THE COURT: All right. 2A-307 will be admitted.
(Government's Exhibit 2A-307 received in evidence)
MS. SLAVIK: Can you publish this for the jury, Ms. Foster.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, can you just tell the jury who this is pictured in the photo?
DAVID JAMES: That is David James.
MS. SLAVIK: In other words, yourself?
DAVID JAMES: That's right.
MS. SLAVIK: Thanks, Ms. Foster. You can take that down.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, I want to talk with you about how you came to work for Mr. Combs. Did you go to college?
DAVID JAMES: I did. I went to Michigan State University.
MS. SLAVIK: When did you graduate?
DAVID JAMES: 2005.
MS. SLAVIK: What did you do after you graduated?
DAVID JAMES: I moved to New York City. I became an executive assistant in the PR communication world to the chairman of the company.
MS. SLAVIK: How long were you in that executive assistant role?
DAVID JAMES: I was with that company for about a year and a half.
MS. SLAVIK: And why did you leave that job?
DAVID JAMES: I wanted to pursue a career in fashion.
MS. SLAVIK: And so what was your next role after the executive assistant position?
DAVID JAMES: Being the personal assistant to Mr. Combs.
MS. SLAVIK: How did you find out about that role?
DAVID JAMES: Um, I saw an article posted in New York Times.
MS. SLAVIK: What did the article describe?
DAVID JAMES: It was probably, like, a half-page article and it said the chairman of Bad Boy Entertainment is looking for a personal assistant.
MS. SLAVIK: Did you apply for the job?
DAVID JAMES: I did. Multiple times.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you explain what you mean by multiple times?
DAVID JAMES: So, I faxed my resume, I dropped it off at Bad Boy, I e-mailed it in. I applied multiple times because no one was calling me back.
MS. SLAVIK: So you wanted this job?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: And what year was this?
DAVID JAMES: This was 2007.
MS. SLAVIK: Did you go to an interview for this position, Mr. James?
DAVID JAMES: Yes, I did.
MS. SLAVIK: Where was the interview?
DAVID JAMES: That was at 1710 Broadway.
MS. SLAVIK: And what was at 1710 Broadway?
DAVID JAMES: That was the headquarters to Bad Boy Entertainment.
MS. SLAVIK: How many other people were there for the interview?
DAVID JAMES: There was probably about 15 people in the lobby waiting for the interview.
MS. SLAVIK: And who did you meet with during this interview?
DAVID JAMES: I met with several people in the interview. His current personal assistant, Tommy, I met with the senior vice president of human resources, Vashta, I met with his current chief of staff, Dia, I met with his sister, Keisha, and I met with another lady in human resources, Marilyn.
MS. SLAVIK: Focusing on Vashta, you said what was her position?
DAVID JAMES: VP, senior VP of human resources.
MS. SLAVIK: At what company?
DAVID JAMES: Bad Boy Entertainment.
MS. SLAVIK: Who was the chairman of Bad Boy?
DAVID JAMES: Mr. Combs.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, what, if anything, did Vashta say about working for Mr. Combs during that first interview?
DAVID JAMES: I remember sitting at her desk, and we were sitting at her desk and there was a picture of Mr. Combs on the wall. Sorry.
MS. SLAVIK: You can take your time, Mr. James. There's a box of Kleenex next to you if you need it.
DAVID JAMES: She pointed at the wall and she said, This is Mr. Combs' kingdom. We're all here to serve in it.
MS. SLAVIK: What happened after you met with the folks that you just mentioned?
DAVID JAMES: At the conclusion of my interview process, there was a final interview, round of interviews, and I was given a packet of questions on a Thursday to be filled out. And I had a week to compile those questions and answers.
MS. SLAVIK: Do you remember what the questions were?
DAVID JAMES: I remember a few of them, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: What were they?
DAVID JAMES: Oh, one was, do a swat analysis on the men's beauty industry, because Sean -- Sean John, one of Mr. Combs' industry, wanted to get into the beauty industry. Do a swat analysis. Second was they gave me 40 different appointments just on a piece of paper and asked me to put together a calendar in chronological order of where things would fit. You had to really know, for example, Hot 97, what time that show was during the day. You had to really show good knowledge of his schedule. Another question was that Mr. Combs likes to go to Saint-Tropez. He wants to rent out a yacht, provide different options for him to select a yacht that he can rent out for the weekend in Saint-Tropez.
MS. SLAVIK: Did you complete this assignment?
DAVID JAMES: I did, yeah. So, excuse me. I received the questions on a Thursday and I remember just being so excited. I went home and worked throughout the weekend, and I turned them in on Monday.
MS. SLAVIK: What happened after that?
DAVID JAMES: Well, Dia was a little surprised how quickly I answered all the questions. And she said, you know, you have a week to compile the information. I told her I didn't need a whole week to compile the information.
MS. SLAVIK: Who, if anyone, did you meet with next?
DAVID JAMES: The way they did it, whoever turned in the answers first, that was who got to meet with Mr. Combs first. So I met with Mr. Combs and Dia in the office.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you exhibit that interaction between you, Dia, and Mr. Combs?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. It was a very professional interaction. Dia was leading the charge of the interview and Mr. Combs asked me two questions.
MS. SLAVIK: What were those questions?
DAVID JAMES: He asked me -- first of all, he likes to go out in Miami. And he said, How do you compile a spreadsheet with my preferences in Miami? So I took that, for example, with where he likes to eat. And so I said, well, I compile a spreadsheet that talked about what your food preferences were, what table you liked to sit at, what's the name of the maître d' so we can organize information around your preferences so we would know that, basically, wherever you were. Excuse me. The second question was how would you make good personal assistant? And I told him that I would make a good personal assistant for two reasons. Number one was I'm not so concerned about what accomplishments we did yesterday. Only thing I'm concerned about is what have we got to do today to make sure we get accomplishments tomorrow. And the second thing is I said, I can't stop, I won't stop. And he kind of nodded his head and said, Yeah, I like that.
MS. SLAVIK: So were you ultimately hired as Mr. Combs' personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: I was, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: When did you start working as his personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: Pretty immediately afterwards. I was hired in a temporary position. I wasn't a full employee at that time. It was, like, a 90-day probationary period.
MS. SLAVIK: When was that approximately, a month, year?
DAVID JAMES: May 2007.
MS. SLAVIK: When you joined, did Mr. Combs have other personal assistants?
DAVID JAMES: He did. He had one senior personal assistant named Tommy.
MS. SLAVIK: That was Tommy?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: What about through your tenure, did Mr. Combs have other personal assistants?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. We went through a lot of personal assistants in those two years.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you name a few?
DAVID JAMES: Genevieve Robles was one, a gentleman named Hector, Mike Barber was another one.
MS. SLAVIK: Did you interact with any of Mr. Combs' former assistants during your tenure?
DAVID JAMES: I did.
MS. SLAVIK: Ms. Foster, could you please publish for the parties only what's marked for identification as Government Exhibit 2A-406.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, do you recognize the person on the screen in front of you?
DAVID JAMES: I do.
MS. SLAVIK: Who is that?
DAVID JAMES: That is Capricorn Clark. She was, I believe, the director of marketing when I was his assistant.
MS. SLAVIK: The government moves Government Exhibit 2A-406 into evidence.
THE COURT: 2A-406 will be admitted.
(Government's Exhibit 2A-406 received in evidence)
MS. SLAVIK: Ms. Foster, could you please publish that for the jury.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, can you just explain to the jury who this is and what her role was when you were a personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. I believe her name was Capricorn Clark and she was the director of marketing for Sean John when I was there.
MS. SLAVIK: Thank you, Ms. Foster. You can take this down.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, who was your supervisor?
DAVID JAMES: Dia.
MS. SLAVIK: What was Dia's last name?
DAVID JAMES: I think it was Simms or Banks. I can't remember.
MS. SLAVIK: What was Dia's role at that time?
DAVID JAMES: She was the chief of staff for Mr. Combs.
MS. SLAVIK: Generally speaking, Mr. James, what were your responsibilities as a personal assistant for Mr. Combs?
DAVID JAMES: That's a -- How long do we have? Honestly, it was to make sure that he was able to operate as a chairman of a company and to make every environment for him comfortable so he could perform his duties. There was a lot of organization of his personal items, um, traveling around the world with him, basically be at his right-hand side wherever he was.
MS. SLAVIK: So how often were you with Mr. Combs day to day?
DAVID JAMES: Every day I was working, I would be by his side.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you just walk the jury through the day to day as a personal assistant for Mr. Combs?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. So what you want to do is, you have to arrive at his house before he wakes up in the morning. It's important that you set the environment up as soon as he wakes up so he's able to have a successful day. So that would be to compile different documents. One of those documents, we have a folder on the table, and that would be everything he needs to approve from a business perspective. If there is certain artwork for an album he's doing, certain advertisements he has to approve. there would be a file of business documents. Next to that would be his business schedule for the day that we would have laid out. We would also have a folder of all the press clippings for any news mention of Mr. Combs in the last 24 hours. I would turn on the TV for him to his preferred channel, and I would work with the chef to make sure breakfast was getting started.
And I would knock on the door to get the day going and get his feedback as to if he was ready to wake up, if we need to make adjustments to his schedule. From there, he would wake up, and we would wait for him to be done with his breakfast. We would call down to security, let them know that Mr. Combs is getting ready to move out for the day. And we would travel around the city, especially New York City. For example, we would walk across the street to Bad Boy for him to do meetings or we would travel around the city for him while he was doing meetings that would take us to about five or six p.m. He would typically go out to dinner, either personal dinner or business dinner. From there, we would go to his studio where he would be working on his album or another album for one that he was producing. That would take us to three or four o'clock in the morning. And then from there, we would either go back to his personal residence or to a destination that he requested. And we would get a call time at the end of the night. It was important that I didn't leave his side until I got the call time to know what time to be back tomorrow. I would text the executive team, his security staff, let them know what time I would be back for tomorrow.
MS. SLAVIK: So, generally speaking, what were your hours?
DAVID JAMES: I would say 30 minutes before he woke up until he gave me that call time at night, and that could be anywhere from eight in the morning to four in the morning.
MS. SLAVIK: And how many days per week were you on duty?
DAVID JAMES: Depending upon the personal staff at the time, some days it would be six days a week, seven days a week. There were times I worked three weeks straight. When we had more executive staff, I worked sometimes five days a week.
MS. SLAVIK: What was your salary, Mr. James?
DAVID JAMES: I believe my starting salary was $70,000.
MS. SLAVIK: Were you paid any overtime?
DAVID JAMES: I was.
MS. SLAVIK: How did you receive your salary?
DAVID JAMES: Through a check from Bad Boy Entertainment.
MS. SLAVIK: Bad Boy signed the checks?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: Focusing back on your responsibilities as Mr. Combs' personal assistant, were you responsible for advancing locations?
DAVID JAMES: I was often responsible for advancing locations, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you explain to the jury what you mean by advancing locations?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. So, to advance a location, you want to set up an environment so Mr. Combs feels comfortable. We would often have different riders depending upon the location. If it was, like, a green room at Oprah, for example, or if it was at a hotel, or if it was at a concert venue. We knew exactly what he wanted to have in the room. That was based off a rider I was provided
MS. SLAVIK: Can you explain what a rider is?
DAVID JAMES: A rider is a list of items that he would like to have in the hotel room.
MS. SLAVIK: You mentioned that one of the locations that you were responsible for advancing was hotel rooms, is that right?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: Did hotel rooms have a specific rider for Mr. Combs?
DAVID JAMES: They had a relatively unique rider, as opposed to a dressing room at Ellen DeGeneres, sure.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, when you worked as a personal assistant for Mr. Combs, where were you based?
DAVID JAMES: Wherever he was. So, in New York City, I had an apartment or I rented out a room in a townhouse in the Upper West Side. When I was in Miami, I would stay inside of his house in Star Island. When we were in Los Angeles, I would also either stay in his home in Los Angeles or in a hotel room down the road.
MS. SLAVIK: You just mentioned New York City, Miami, Los Angeles. Did Mr. Combs have homes in all of those locations?
DAVID JAMES: Yes, he did.
MS. SLAVIK: Did you travel with Mr. Combs as well?
DAVID JAMES: I did.
MS. SLAVIK: How frequently?
DAVID JAMES: Very frequently. We traveled quite a bit.
MS. SLAVIK: You mentioned other staff members for Mr. Combs. Do you remember that?
DAVID JAMES: Yes.
MS. SLAVIK: You mentioned security staff?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: Who were the members of Mr. Combs' security staff when you were employed as a personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: His head of security was a gentleman named Uncle Paulie. We also had a gentleman named Roger Bonds. A gentleman named D-Roc. Big Tim. And Malik was his driver in New York City.
MS. SLAVIK: Did all of these individuals work for Mr. Combs?
DAVID JAMES: That was my understanding. Um, Uncle Paulie oversaw them. I understood they were being paid by Bad Boy.
MS. SLAVIK: And you mentioned the hours that you worked, sometimes up to 20 hours a day, is that right?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: Was it your understanding that security staff worked those similar hours?
DAVID JAMES: Absolutely. They would have to be there just as long. They may not be -- yes, that's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: What was the role of Mr. Combs' security staff?
DAVID JAMES: To protect Mr. Combs, Mr. Combs' family, and Mr. Combs' property.
MS. SLAVIK: Did any of these securities staff carry weapons?
DAVID JAMES: Illegal weapons or legal weapons?
MS. SLAVIK: Starting with legal weapons, were you aware of security staff carrying legal weapons?
DAVID JAMES: I was, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: What -- well, who carried legal weapons?
DAVID JAMES: I saw the head of security carried a knife.
MS. SLAVIK: The head of security being?
DAVID JAMES: Uncle Paulie.
MS. SLAVIK: You saw this knife?
DAVID JAMES: I did.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you describe it?
DAVID JAMES: It was just, like, a switchblade knife that could fit in your pocket.
MS. SLAVIK: What about illegal weapons, did you see any security staff carry illegal weapons?
DAVID JAMES: No, I did not.
MS. SLAVIK: What, if any, guidance did security staff provide you with respect to your role as a personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: They often told me to stay in my lane.
MS. SLAVIK: When did security staff say this to you in your tenure as a personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: Typically, if I was asking too many questions, it was honestly all the time, to be honest with you.
MS. SLAVIK: How was the message delivered?
DAVID JAMES: Verbally.
MS. SLAVIK: What was your reaction to this message, stay in your lane?
DAVID JAMES: I understood it to, basically, do the job I was hired to do and do that job and only that job.
MS. SLAVIK: And do you remember who specifically said this to you?
DAVID JAMES: I can remember Uncle Paulie saying it to me, Bonds saying it to me, Big Tim saying it to me, Malik saying it to me.
MS. SLAVIK: When, relative to when you started as Mr. Combs' personal assistant, when was the first time that one of the security staff told you to stay in your lane?
DAVID JAMES: I would say very early on. When I first started, obviously, I was training. I didn't really know the ropes or what was expected of me. I was trained very early on. As I became more tenured, they had to say it less because I you know, I knew what I was supposed to do.
MS. SLAVIK: When you first heard this message, stay in your lane, delivered by the security staff, what was your reaction?
DAVID JAMES: Um, I knew not to mess with them, to listen to them.
MS. SLAVIK: Now, you mentioned household staff as well, is that right?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: Who did Mr. Combs have as household staff while you worked as a personal assistant?
DAVID JAMES: It was a woman who managed his house in Miami. I believe her name was Amanda. He also had a personal chef and he had different housekeepers in Alpine, for example.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you explain to the jury what Alpine is?
DAVID JAMES: Alpine, New Jersey. It's a city in New Jersey.
MS. SLAVIK: And did Mr. Combs have a residence in Alpine, New Jersey?
DAVID JAMES: He did, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: Focusing on Mr. Combs' personal chef.
MS. SLAVIK: Ms. Foster, can you publish for the parties only what's been marked as identification as Government Exhibit 2A-405.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James do you recognize the individual in this photo?
DAVID JAMES: I do, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: Who is it?
DAVID JAMES: Chef Jordan.
MS. SLAVIK: How do you know?
DAVID JAMES: Because she was Mr. Combs' personal chef for probably a year and a half or so since I was there.
MS. SLAVIK: Is this a fair and accurate depiction of Chef Jordan?
DAVID JAMES: It is, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: The government moves Government Exhibit 2A-405 into evidence.
MR. AGNIFILO: No objection.
THE COURT: 2A-405 will be admitted.
(Government's Exhibit 2A-405 received in evidence)
MS. SLAVIK: Ms. Foster, can you please publish this photo.
BY MS. SLAVIK:
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, can you explain to the jury who is in this photo?
DAVID JAMES: That is Chef Jordan. It was Mr. Combs' personal chef.
MS. SLAVIK: So Chef Jordan worked for Mr. Combs?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct, under Bad Boy Entertainment.
MS. SLAVIK: Thank you, Ms. Foster. You can take this down.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, what about girlfriends. Did Mr. Combs have girlfriends during your tenure?
DAVID JAMES: Yes, he did.
MS. SLAVIK: Who were the girlfriends that you were familiar with during your tenure?
DAVID JAMES: Ms. Porter was his main girlfriend, I would say. He had other girlfriends, such as a woman named XXXX, a woman named Tara, a woman named Yanna, a woman named Cassie.
MS. SLAVIK: Focusing on Cassie.
MS. SLAVIK: Ms. Foster, could you please publish what is in evidence as Government Exhibit 2A-401.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, do you recognize the individual in this photo?
DAVID JAMES: I do.
MS. SLAVIK: Who is it?
DAVID JAMES: That's Ms. Ventura.
MS. SLAVIK: Is that Cassie?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: Thank you, Ms. Foster. You can take this down.
MS. SLAVIK: When did you first meet Cassie, Mr. James?
DAVID JAMES: The first time I ever met Cassie was in Mr. Combs' house in Miami.
MS. SLAVIK: And what were the circumstances under which you met Cassie?
DAVID JAMES: Cassie was coming down for a weekend to be with Mr. Combs.
MS. SLAVIK: And what happened during that weekend?
DAVID JAMES: Um, Mr. Combs, he rented out a yacht to take her out on the boat. We went out to the club, we went out to dinner. They partied all weekend.
MS. SLAVIK: What, if anything, did Mr. Combs say about Cassie visiting that weekend?
DAVID JAMES: He was really trying to impress her.
MS. SLAVIK: Did Cassie eventually become Mr. Combs' girlfriend?
DAVID JAMES: She did, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: Was there a professional component to their relationship as well?
DAVID JAMES: There was, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: What was that?
DAVID JAMES: Um, Mr. Combs was the chairman of Bad Boy Records and Cassie was an artist on Bad Boy.
MS. SLAVIK: What, if any, conversations did you have with Cassie?
DAVID JAMES: I can remember having two conversations with Cassie over the course of my career. They weren't very frequent, but those two, I do remember.
MS. SLAVIK: Starting with the first conversation you remember, can you describe to the jury that conversation?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. We were in Star Island. This was probably within the first year of my tenure with Mr. Combs. And it was me, her friend, I think her name was Kerry Morgan, and Cassie. We were standing out on a dock on Star Island and we were smoking cigarettes. And Cassie said to me, she said, Man, this lifestyle is crazy. I was, like, Yeah, this lifestyle is crazy. You know, I was thinking about how many hours we work, how much we travel. Um, I told her, I said, Cassie, if it's so crazy, why don't you just leave and get out. She was, like, I can't, I can't get out, you know. Mr. Combs oversees so much of my life. He's -- he controls my music career, he pays for my apartment, he gives me an allowance, essentially a salary. I just didn't think that she could easily leave.
MS. SLAVIK: You mentioned Star Island. Can you explain to the jury what Star Island is?
DAVID JAMES: Star Island is a location in Miami. It's a neighborhood that is its own private island that's very famous.
MS. SLAVIK: And that is where Mr. Combs' residence in Miami was located?
DAVID JAMES: That's correct.
MS. SLAVIK: You mentioned a second conversation you had with Cassie. Can you explain to the jury that conversation?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. This was further along with my tenure. We were at the Sundance Film Festival, which is in Utah. Cassie and I shared a cab from the airport, and she was really -- she was really happy this trip. And -- Sorry. She was going over her songs that she was working on for a long time. And she put together a track list, which was essentially what the album she was going to put out. And she remembered, like, telling me about the songs and the track list. And she was super happy about it.
MS. SLAVIK: Do you remember that album coming out?
DAVID JAMES: I do not remember that album coming out, no.
MS. SLAVIK: Did you ever speak with Mr. Combs about his relationship with Cassie?
DAVID JAMES: I did not, no.
MS. SLAVIK: Did you ever hear Mr. Combs speak about his relationship with Cassie with other people?
DAVID JAMES: I did. There was a conversation that I overheard, yes.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you describe that conversation that you overheard?
DAVID JAMES: So we were in Manhattan and we were driving to a meeting, business meeting, in the back. We were in the Escalade, and I was sitting in the third row. And Mr. Combs was with one of his business associates/friends. And his friend asked him, you know, How is Kim? How is Cassie? And Mr. Combs said, you know, Kim is doing good. She's out in LA. She's taking care of the family. That's my queen. And then he said, you know, Cassie is good. I got her right where I want her. She's young. And, you know, that's what he said.
MS. SLAVIK: And what did you understand Mr. Combs to mean by that?
MR. AGNIFILO: I'll object.
THE COURT: Sustained.
MS. SLAVIK: Did Mr. Combs say anything else about Cassie in that conversation?
DAVID JAMES: Yeah. He said that she was very moldable.
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. James, did you ever see disagreements between Mr. Combs and Cassie?
DAVID JAMES: I did.
MS. SLAVIK: Can you describe the disagreements that you observed?
DAVID JAMES: The disagreements I observed were about Cassie's professional career. She really wanted to get into modeling and acting and Mr. Combs -- Those are the arguments, yeah.
MS. SLAVIK: Your Honor, I'm not sure how much longer you want to go. This is actually a good stopping point.
THE COURT: All right. Thank you, members of the jury. We'll see you back here. You were all so prompt today. Thank you again for your all efforts. Remember, don't talk to each other about the case. Do not look up anything about the case. Do not talk to anyone in here or anyone in your lives about this case. And we'll see you here. So, if you can be here 8:45, we can get started at 9:00. That would be perfect. Thank you very much. Have a great evening. All rise.
(Continued on next page)
(Jury not present)
THE COURT: Mr. James, we'll see you here tomorrow.
DAVID JAMES: Thank you, your Honor.
THE COURT: Thank you very much. Please be seated.
(Witness excused)
THE COURT: Ms. Slavik, do you have an estimate on the length of remaining time in your direct examination?
MS. SLAVIK: Your Honor, I would estimate probably, at most, another hour.
THE COURT: Another hour? OK. Who do you have next after Mr. James?
(Counsel confer)
MS. SLAVIK: Sorry?
THE COURT: Who do you have next?
MS. SLAVIK: Next witness will be Sharay Hayes.
THE COURT: After Ms. Hayes?
MS. SLAVIK: Mr. Hayes.
THE COURT: Mr. Hayes. Sorry.
MS. SLAVIK: One moment, please, your Honor. The next witness after Mr. Hayes will be Regina Ventura.
THE COURT: Do you anticipate those two witnesses being the morning witnesses, in all likelihood, tomorrow?
MS. SLAVIK: Your Honor, I think we could probably get to the next witness after that, we expect to be, Gerard Gannon, law enforcement officer.
THE COURT: Given that, after Mr. Gannon.
MS. SLAVIK: I'm sorry. I need to go back. After Ms. Ventura, we'll actually be calling Jordan Atkinson, and then Gerard Gannon. So I think it's likely that we will get to Ms. Atkinson tomorrow.
THE COURT: And then, perhaps, Mr. Gannon?
MS. SLAVIK: He'll be here. Frankly, it would be surprising if we got to him tomorrow. He'll be here. He'll be prepared. We will certainly get to him on Wednesday.
THE COURT: All right. Just so the parties know, I mean, I like the fact that we're starting -- that we're ending earlier. And I know that makes it a lot easier on the parties. But depending on the pace that we're going at, I may tell the jury that there may be certain days where, instead of 3:00, it's something like 3:30 or closer to 4:00, just so we can get in more testimony. I am just putting that on the parties' radar. And if there are any concerns about that, let me know. If anyone thinks it's a bad idea, just let me know. I just want to put that on the radar and make sure we're moving at a swift pace. Ms. Slavik, anything else to address?
MS. SLAVIK: Your Honor, just to note, that we do think we're moving exactly on pace. We are doing great for time. To the extent your Honor does want to extend the court day, totally fine. If you're able to provide a little bit of notice, I think it would be very helpful. Certainly, for the government, and I imagine for the defense as well.
THE COURT: All right. Mr. Agnifilo.
MR. AGNIFILO: Yes, Judge. I don't know if this is something you can help us with, but we've run it down as far as we can on our end. There is a mechanism at the MDC for video calls. It's called VTC. And given --
THE COURT: I think I've seen it.
MR. AGNIFILO: Yes. We have to get off the VTC sometimes 5:30, sometimes as late as 6:00. The MDC has been very accommodating to us in many, many ways. This, unfortunately, has not been something they've been able to do. Meaning, that we just can't have Mr. Combs on the video past 5:30 or 6:00 o'clock, and it's just not enough time. I mean, it's a little bit easier with the 3:00 o'clock stop, quite frankly, because we do get some time with him when we're not all sitting in court listening to the evidence. But if we can get -- I mean, 9:00 o'clock would be a walk-off home run, and I might as well swing as hard as I can. So that would be wonderful. Your Honor has been very good at saying, if you have an issue, bring it to me. I'm bringing it to you. I wish had a more of a path to success to present you with, as well. We'll start with me bringing it to you and see where that goes.
THE COURT: Would it be possible for you to put a very short letter on the docket requesting additional time? That just makes it easier on my end to forward it to the appropriate people to see if I can get you some help.
MR. AGNIFILO: Of course, Judge. Thank you very much.
THE COURT: Anything further on your side?
MR. AGNIFILO: I see nothing. Nothing, Judge.
THE COURT: I take it, from your perspective as well, you're comfortable with the current end time and think that we're making good pace. Seems like you have -- there is some additional reasons on your side why the earlier stop time is helpful.
MR. AGNIFILO: There are. The 3:00 o'clock really does help us. It might be a -- if the VTC time extends, it's a little easier on our end. What I was going to propose is to see where we are on Thursday, because I get the sense we're moving pretty efficiently.
THE COURT: That's fair. And that addresses Ms. Slavik's concern about the notice. So we will see how we're doing next week, and if we need to make any adjustments, we'll do it next week.
MR. AGNIFILO: Very good.
THE COURT: Thank you very much. I'll see you at 8:30, if any issues are raised this evening.
(Adjourned to May 20, 2025, at 8:30 a.m.)
THE COURT: * * *