Diddy could face 'substantial' prison time after guilty verdict, warns OJ Simpson's lawyer
Despite his partial acquittal on federal charges, Sean "Diddy" Combs remained behind bars as he awaits a decision on the judge's sentencing.
Speculation as to how much time the rapper would spend in the slammer circulated after Diddy beat the RICO charge that would have landed him in prison for life.
Robert Shapiro, the first member and initial chair of OJ Simpson's defense team, gave a grim prediction regarding Diddy's potential sentence. After being found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, Diddy's judge proposed his sentencing hearing take place on Oct. 3.
"I have to look into a crystal ball. And this is going to be a call that only one person is going to make," Shaprio told Fox News Digital. "Many times we will rely on a probation report or a pre-sentence report where they calculate the guidelines."
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According to Shapiro, judges will typically follow these guidelines, and the former defense attorney estimated the range in Diddy's case would likely come out to be in the 2.5-3.5-year range.
"Whether or not he had a criminal history, I don't know. That could raise it," he explained. "But, having said that and having seen that this judge did not release him on bail, I think a message may be coming that you're going to be spending a lot more time, so no reason to let you come out and come back in."
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Shapiro pointed out that Judge Arun Subramanian brought up the 2016 surveillance video showing Diddy attacking his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura when denying the rapper's bail application.
"If the judge looks at that tape in his mind and is reminded about it again… I think there is a real chance that a substantial sentence will be forthcoming."
Diddy could spend a maximum of 20 years behind bars, 10 years for each count he was convicted of. However, the prosecution suggested the rapper be kept behind bars somewhere between four and five years.
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Celebrity lawyer David Chesnoff noted that while the circumstances of Diddy's case would generally lead to a low sentence, Judge Subramanian can actually do a "variance." The criminal defense attorney explained the sentencing guidelines don't take into account other factors the judge is allowed to consider.
"The guidelines in this case, based on what he got convicted of and the lack of criminal history, would lead you to think that it could be a rather low sentence," Chesnoff, who has defended Paris Hilton, Buno Mars and more, told Fox News Digital. "And considering the amount of time he's been in, he'd be out quickly, but on the other hand, the judge is allowed to do what's called a variance — when the guidelines don't take into account factors that the judge is allowed to consider."
"I got the sense from this judge that he feels that [Diddy is] deserving of punishment, otherwise he wouldn't have kept him in," he added. "So it's hard to speculate. The maximum sentence is 10 and 10. That's very unlikely. But do I think that he'll get somewhere above what the defense wants and lower than what the government wants? I think he'll split the baby."
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During a press conference following the verdict, his lead counsel, Marc Agnifilo, boasted that the team wasn't going to stop until Diddy walks out a free man to his family.
WATCH: DIDDY'S LEGAL TEAM WON'T STOP UNTIL HE WALKS A ‘FREE MAN,’ RAPPER'S ATTORNEY SAYS
"We are not nearly done fighting. We are just getting started," Agnifilo said outside the courthouse Wednesday. "To win this and to defeat the prosecutors from the Southern District of New York takes effort from beginning to end. Today was a major, major step in the right direction. But we fight on and we're going to win, and we're not going to stop until he walks out of prison a free man to his family."
Diddy's judge denied the rapper's bail package following his partial acquittal. Judge Subramanian claimed Diddy's violence within his personal relationships, that Combs owned up to, was a contributing factor to his reasoning for keeping the rapper behind bars.
According to the federal judge, there would be no way to guarantee the safety of others should the musician be released.