Diddy Trial

Cassie is set to testify against Diddy in his federal trial ... and, it better be sooner rather than later -- 'cause it looks like she may need to rest, recuperate and get ready for baby number 3 soon!

Photogs snapped Cassie out in New York City Wednesday ... standing on a stoop in a gray sweater that just barely covers her massive baby bump.

It's hard to tell exactly how far along the singer-songwriter is here, though she did announce she's with child back in February ... but, it's clear she's deep in pregnancy mode now -- and, she'll be waddling up to the witness stand soon to testify.

Mark Geragos may not like that Diddy's lawyers are subject to a gag order -- and so is he ... but, a prominent prosecutor from L.A. says prosecutors need it to avoid a possible appeal.

Kirsten Brown-Neil -- a deputy district attorney for L.A. County -- spoke with us on "TMZ Live" about Judge Arun Subramanian warning Geragos to watch what he says on our "2 Angry Men" podcast.

When asked about Geragos citing a Supreme Court ruling saying defendants and their attorneys have the right to speak publicly about the case, Kirsten said she thinks Geragos is taking a very narrow view of the ruling.

Diddy's third day of jury selection featured a couple people with close ties to the case ... this despite the judge's direction to both sides to better vet prospective jurors.

Proceedings in Diddy's case are moving forward ... with more potential jurors called Wednesday as both sides worked to put together the 45-person jury pool -- and, it seems they weren't vetted with a fine-tooth comb.

Juror 317 took the stand ... which got Judge Arun Subramanian laughing immediately -- 'cause he and the man used to work on anti-class action cases together.

Diddy's federal trial may begin without one of the biggest witnesses for the prosecution ... 'cause the feds still can't get in touch with the woman known as "Victim 3."

The third day of jury selection in Diddy's federal case wrapped up just a short time ago ... and, the prosecution told the judge they still haven't been able to locate this unidentified person or get through to their attorney.

As we told you ... the prosecution, led by Maurene Comey, admitted Monday that Victim 3 does not live near New York City -- and, try as they might, they're worried about getting her to show up in person.

The judge in Diddy's criminal trial is issuing a warning to Mark Geragos over his public comments about the case, and vows he'll be watching and listening weekly to his podcast, "2 Angry Men."

Judge Arun Subramanian called Geragos into chambers Tuesday -- on day 2 of jury selection -- for a tête-à-tête about the famed attorney referring to the federal prosecuting team as a "6-pack of white women" during last week's episode of the podcast he co-hosts with TMZ's Harvey Levin.

Prosecutors alerted the judge to the comment, which they claimed violated court rules because Geragos appears to be consulting with Diddy's defense team. The rule bars prosecutors and attorneys involved in a trial from making public comments that could influence the jury.

Diddy judge Arun Subramanian looked more like a student heading into a building to attend class today -- instead of his day job, which is presiding over the disgraced music mogul's federal sex trafficking trial.

On Wednesday morning, TMZ shot video of Judge Subramanian as he zipped inside the federal courthouse in lower Manhattan, where he's overseeing Diddy's infamous trial, which is in its third day of jury selection.

Subramanian is in his mid-40s, but he appears much younger, with a thin build and a spring in his step. What's more, Subramanian is wearing a backpack with chunky headphones over his ears, giving off more of a college vibe.

Nicole Westmoreland -- the newest lawyer on Diddy's team -- is a survivor of sexual assault ... because she was allegedly raped back in 2001.

The powerhouse attorney -- who officially joined Diddy's team this morning -- was just 19 years old back in 2001 when she worked for a company that helped people reinstate suspended driver's licenses.

According to Westmoreland, Bryan Williams -- vice president of Cash Money Records -- and a man named “Stone” met her and asked her to make a sales pitch to the company at Patchwerk Recording Studio in Atlanta.

Diddy's legal team hasn't won the case yet ... but, they're off to a good start in the wardrobe department -- crushing prosecutors in the battle of fashion.

We have reporters inside the courtroom monitoring the trial ... and, they say the defense team's style choices are causing a stir among some members of the gallery. We also caught a few of Diddy's female attorneys coming out of the courthouse in their fancy duds -- and one of them actually spoke to our photog about her fashion sense. Check out our video.

Meanwhile, three women who make the "Rotten Mango" podcast were particularly floored by Teny Geragos, daughter of Mark Geragos (who cohosts our "2 Angry Men" podcast) ... she wore a chic ensemble -- a black print Veronica Beard dress accompanied by a short matching blazer. She finished off the look with 4.5-inch pointy black suede Aquazzura heels, complete with bows decorating the backs. She also sported a vintage black Chanel bag.

Diddy's defense team and federal prosecutors are adding 16 more potential jurors to the pool ... and one of them has strong feelings about the Cassie beating video.

After 2 days of jury selection, there are now a total of 35 people in the jury pool. Today's selections break down like this: 5 white men, 4 Black men, 3 Black women, 2 white women, 1 Latino man and 1 woman whose ethnicity isn't clear.

Perhaps the most interesting selection among that group was a man who told the judge he had seen the hotel surveillance video of Diddy attacking Cassie. He said Diddy looked "angry and hostile and entitled" during the brutal scene.

The absence of Diddy's kids during jury selection this week ain't a sign of trouble -- they're still riding hard for their dad, TMZ has learned.

Family sources tell TMZ they’re just waiting for jury selection to wrap, and you better believe they’ll be there once things kick off, showing up for their dad like they always have in court.

To confirm, we're told there’s zero bad blood between Diddy and his kids -- in fact, it’s all love. Right now, his twin daughters Jessie and D’Lila have been busy juggling prom and school, but again, the whole crew still plans to pull up to court to support their dad.

Diddy's lawyers and prosecutors are making headway on putting together a jury pool ... but, it's slow going -- 'cause there are so many landmines that are getting people tossed.

The second day of jury selection is proceeding in a Manhattan federal courthouse Tuesday ... and, while some people are making it through to the next round of jury selection, many more have been excused for cause.

Juror 149 -- one of many potential jurors who have been questioned to begin this week -- told the judge his son was beaten up and robbed while at George Washington University.

Diddy's former employee Rodney Jones will have to refile his lawsuit against Cuba Gooding Jr. and Justin Combs if he wants to pursue legal action ... because the case has been dismissed due to failure to serve them papers.

The case was dismissed Tuesday morning ... with the court pointing to Jones' attorney Tyrone Blackburn's inability to effectively serve the two stars as the main reasons for the dismissal without prejudice.

According to the docs, Blackburn waited until the service deadline was imminent before making any meaningful efforts to serve them ... and failed to show any good reason for failing to get it done. Jones' lawsuit was filed back in February 2024.

Jay-Z has a new beef with his Jane Doe accuser -- even though she's dropped her lawsuit, he says she's on social media bragging she stands by her allegation he raped her.

Jay just filed an amendment to the defamation suit he filed against her and her attorney, Tony Buzbee. In the new docs, he calls out a TikTok she allegedly posted last month featuring some pretty angry lip-synched audio -- "You couldn't pay me a million dollars to get an apology video out of me, I stand on what I said, f*** you."

According to the suit, Doe publicly standing by her original claim she was raped "continues to display a shocking and reckless disregard for the truth that is both intentional and malicious."

Diddy has added a second Black attorney to his team of legal eagles ... because he just hired Nicole Westmoreland to work with his seven other lawyers to try to get him acquitted at his federal trial in NYC.

Westmoreland will work alongside another Black attorney, Xavier Robert Donaldson, and Diddy's leading trial lawyers Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos, who are both white.

Having two African American lawyers on Diddy's legal team is an interesting move, considering that his camp pointed to race as a major factor in what they say is a federal takedown of a rich, successful Black man.

Sean "Diddy" Combs is getting extra guidance in court from famed attorney Mark Geragos, but federal prosecutors ain't having it -- because Geragos doesn't have clearance to participate, and frequently discusses the case on his podcast, "2 Angry Men."

Geragos was in court for the first day of jury selection in Diddy's criminal trial -- seated somewhere behind the 7 attorneys Diddy has retained, all of whom have court clearance to defend him.

But, prosecutors say they noticed Geragos and other members of his firm, consulting with the defense team, and they think that's a party foul due to his side gig. In a letter to Judge Arun Subramanian, they cite a rule barring anyone associated with the defense from making public statements that could "interfere with a fair trial."

Federal prosecutors are under pressure relating to one of their star witnesses in the Diddy trial ... because they revealed in court today they may not be bringing an alleged victim into the courtroom to testify.

The alleged victim in question is a woman and the feds revealed Monday the woman does not live close to New York City, where the trial is being held, and they say she's told the court she might not even show up despite being subpoenaed.

Prosecutors claim they are having difficulty contacting the woman and her attorney ... and the judge asked lead prosecutor Maurene Comey if the prosecution planned to drop the woman's name in opening statements.