Cassie Ventura & Sean “Diddy” Combs Case: Commentary Roundup

For many intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors and advocates, the recent testimony of Cassie Ventura in the Sean “Diddy” Combs case, along with the verdict, highlights the need for greater IPV-related education, awareness, and legal reforms. Several recent articles have brought these issues to light, reminding the public of the critical work we still need to do to support victims and bring about important changes. Here’s our roundup on some of the more thought-provoking media surrounding the case.

• Myth of Mutual Abuse: In this article, author Alyssa Goldberg highlights the Combs’ legal team’s claim of “mutual violence” are a tactic used to shift blame away from the perpetrator of domestic violence to the victim. As she notes, Combs was in the power position, and Cassie’s safety and livelihood relied on keeping him happy.

• Question of Consent: Columnist Laura Trujillo notes that while the jury concluded Cassie has consented to abusive acts, the question remains as to whether there can truly be consent in an abusive relationship. As Trujillo writes: “Can someone ever really freely consent when there is abuse? When does consent become survival? What if it’s a yes is because the last time a victim said no, they were met with a punch to the face?”

• 5 Ways the Diddy Scandal Is Again Highlighting the Need to Extend Statute of Limitations in Sexual Misconduct Cases: In this blog post, a California law firm explores how the Combs case is bringing attention to the statute of limitations in sexual misconduct cases. As the author writes: “Here's a startling fact: thanks to recent legal changes, some of Diddy's accusers are bringing forward allegations from decades ago. This isn't just another celebrity scandal—it’s once again a seismic shift in how we approach justice for sexual misconduct survivors.” However, in California, the statute of limitations for domestic violence is still five years from the date of the incident, as it is in many other states. In the case of Ventura and Combs, the 2016 video of the IPV incident in Los Angeles was outside of this five-year window, preventing prosecution in California. But Ventura also filed a lawsuit against Combs in New York, which was only possible due to the Adult Survivors Act, a law that allowed survivors of sexual assault to sue their abusers even if the statute of limitations had passed. This raises the question of whether more states need to adopt the Adult Survivors Act or similar legislation.

Although the press attention and celebrity of the Cassie Ventura and Sean “Diddy” Combs is unusual, the issues of intimate partner violence and abuse are all too common. In fact, in the United States, more than 12 million people experience domestic violence annually, which equites to roughly 24 people per minute. If you are a victim of domestic violence living in the U.S., please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline for resources and assistance at 800-799-7233. Please call when you feel it is safe to do so.