Diddy Files Appeal Over Sentence in Prostitution Conviction

Lawyers for Sean "Diddy" Combs are arguing his sentence is far too harsh ... accusing the judge in a new legal filing of punishing him for crimes for which he was acquitted.

The rapper's legal team filed an appeal Friday in which they point out a jury found Diddy not guilty of sex trafficking and RICO charges ... yet Diddy received a sentence his lawyers say is roughly four times higher than normal for his prostitution-related Mann Act convictions.

Diddy's lawyers blast his 50-month sentence as a "perversion of justice."

They say the judge engaged in "acquitted conduct" sentencing -- the practice of increasing punishment based on rejected allegations -- which they insist has been criticized across the legal landscape.

Diddy's team wants an appeals court to order Diddy's "immediate release and grant a judgment of acquittal or at least vacate and remand for resentencing."

As you know ... Diddy was acquitted on the major federal charges he faced last year following a two-month-long trial. He was convicted on two counts of transportation for the purpose of prostitution in July.