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Sean "Diddy" Combs may have to return to court to face a new trial over sexual assault allegations from a lawsuit filed by former publicist and producer Jonathan Hay.
According to a report AllHipHop published on Thursday, March 12, Combs' attorneys' recent motion to dismiss Hay's lawsuit was denied by Judge Michael E. Whitaker. The mogul's legal team argued that Hay's lawsuit doesn't present all the facts, but clearly, the judge didn't agree. The judge's decision could clear a pathway to a trial over the lawsuit. Hay, a record producer and celebrity publicist, alleged that Combs sexually assaulted him twice.
The first time happened during a studio session in 2021, during which Combs allegedly forced Hay to perform oral sex on him. Another incident allegedly happened in 2020. Hay accused Combs of masturbating into a shirt with The Notorious B.I.G. while they worked together at a photoshoot. He said the mogul then threw the shirt on him and said, "Rest in peace BIG.” Hay said he initially hesitated to sue Combs, but was inspired to do it after Casandra "Cassie" Ventura filed her multimillion-dollar lawsuit in 2023. Even so, Hay filed his legal complaint as "John Doe" until he revealed his identity last year.
“Once Cassie’s lawsuit came out,” Hay told CNN, “I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, here we go. And then once the raids happened, I was like holy crap. That’s when I was like, ‘Okay, now is my time. Finally, I just decided that, alright, I’m going to go forward with this.”
Like many of the other sexual assault lawsuits that have been filed against him, Combs denied the allegations. “As Mr. Combs’ legal team has repeatedly stated for over a year now, he cannot address every meritless allegation in what has become a media circus. Let me make it absolutely clear, Mr. Combs categorically denies as false and defamatory all claims that he sexually abused anyone,” Jonathan Davis said in a statement. “He looks forward to vindicating himself in court, where such matters are decided – and not in the media – based on admissible, material evidence, not rank speculation and unsubstantiated allegations.”
Combs was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. He was later sentenced to serve 50 months in prison. Following his sentencing last October, Combs was transferred to FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey. He's expected to be released in April 2028.