Diddy‘s mother wants you to feel sorry for her — and not for any of the music mogul’s alleged victims!!
On Sunday, Janice Smalls Combs released a long, winding, and VERY verbose statement to the media. Sent out via her attorney Natlie G. Figgers, the statement attempted to contextualize Diddy’s alleged behavior amid his fight with the federal government over sex trafficking and racketeering charges. And it also made major excuses for her son while simultaneously asking the world to feel sorry for the family and others “who have been wrongfully prosecuted.” Hmmm…
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The statement began with a banger. Janice claimed that the entire situation around her son was “a narrative created out of lies,” and even called it “a public lynching.” Whoa. She shared:
“I come to you today as a mother that is devastated and profoundly saddened by the allegations made against my son, Sean Combs. It is heartbreaking to see my son judged not for the truth, but for a narrative created out of lies. To bear witness [sic] what seems to be like a public lynching of my son before he has had the opportunity to prove his innocence is a pain too unbearable to put into words. Like every human being, my son deserves to have this day in court, to finally share his side, and to prove his innocence.”
She then went on to say that she was “not here to portray [her] son as perfect because he is not.” But that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to go to bat for him, anyways! Janice referenced the now-infamous hotel hallway video involving Diddy and his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, which occurred in 2016 and showed the Bad Boy Records mogul appearing to grab the woman by her neck before assaulting, dragging, shoving, and kicking her repeatedly. Janice said:
“He has made mistakes in his past, as we all have. My son may not have been entirely truthful about certain things, such as denying he has ever gotten violent with an ex-girlfriend when the hotel’s surveillance showed otherwise.”
And then she continued with her belief that because Diddy settled Cassie’s lawsuit over that incident so quickly, that the feds saw that “as an admission of guilt,” and moved to strike:
“Sometimes, the truth and a lie become so closely intertwined that it becomes terrifying to admit one part of the story, especially when that truth is outside the norm or is too complicated to be believed. This is why I believe my son’s civil legal team opted to settle the ex-girlfriend’s lawsuit instead of contesting it until the end, resulting in a ricochet effect as the federal government used this decision against my son by interpreting it as an admission of guilt.”
Janice’s statement went on to reference the “many individuals who were wrongfully convicted and later exonerated.” Trying to play up the idea that the prosecution against her son is faulty, she said:
“Not being entirely straightforward about one issue does not mean my son is guilty of the repulsive allegations and the grave charges leveled against him. Many individuals who were wrongfully convicted and later exonerated had their freedom taken from them not because they were guilty of the crimes they were accused of, but because they didn’t fit the image of what this society considers to be a ‘good person.’”
They “didn’t fit the image of what this society considers to be a ‘good person'”?!?!?! Seriously?!?! There is an OCEAN of difference between being a misunderstood “good person” and the things Diddy is accused of doing!!
She then turned to play the sob story even more. Claiming that her son’s life is “crumbling before our eyes” while the whole world is left to do nothing but “make jokes and laugh” about it, the embattled mother said:
“Watching the world make jokes and laugh at my son’s life crumbling before our eyes is something I can never forget. It is truly agonizing to watch the world turn against my son so quickly and easily over lies and misconceptions, without ever hearing his side or affording him the opportunity to present his side. These lies thrown at him are motivated by those seeking a financial gain, and not justice. These individuals saw how quickly my son’s civil legal team settled his ex-girlfriend’s lawsuit, so they believe they can receive a quick payday by falsely accusing my son. False allegations of sexual assault thwart true victims of sexual violence from getting the justice they deserve.”
The beleaguered momma bear wasn’t done there, though. The winding statement continued with her claim that “the federal government is now using these lies to prosecute my son.” She then tried to play up the victim card for herself and the rest of her family, and again attempted to angle out towards the idea of wrongful prosecution:
“This injustice has been unbearable for our family. The worst part of this ordeal is watching my beloved son be stripped of his dignity, not for what he did, but for what people choose to believe about him. I beg you to think about those who have been wrongfully persecuted, to remember that not everyone who has made mistakes in life deserves to have their entire existence judged by a single action or a few mistakes. My son is not the monster they have painted him to be, and he deserves the chance to tell his side.”
Whew. It’s a lot. It’s a lot.
What do U make of that statement, Perezcious readers?! Sound OFF with your thoughts in the comments (below)…
[Image via MEGA/WENN]
