Sean Combs Arrested and Denied Bail on Federal Charges
On Monday September 16th, Sean Combs was arrested in New York by federal agents on charges for racketeering and sex trafficking. A federal court later unsealed the charges revealing that, along with Monday’s publicized arrest, Combs was also being indicted for transportation to engage in prostitution. The indictment alleges that Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct.”
These charges come on the heals of multiple lawsuits filed against P Diddy, including a lawsuit filed by his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura alleging domestic violence, rapper Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones alleging forced engagement in sex-trafficking parties, and a number of anonymous plaintiffs accusing Combs of mainly sex based offenses. These lawsuits are referenced in the government’s case against Diddy.
Since the indictment was unsealed, details of the allegations have hit news outlets and spread like wildfire among social media. Sean Combs’s sex parties, popularly known as “freak offs,” have been a major topic of discussion. According to the indictment, Combs used his power to “lure female victims into [his] orbit, often under pretense of a romantic relationship.” Then he would force them to engage in sex acts with multiple male sex workers over an extended period. Additionally, the indictment indicates that federal agents seized fire arms and ammunition, including 3 AR-15s with serial numbers obstructed and a drum magazine. Agents also seized various “freak off supplies, including narcotics and more than 1,000 bottes of baby oil and lubricant.” Diddy is also accused of using guns, kidnapping and arson to control his victims, including rapper Kid Cudi, who’s car allegedly blew up in his driveway in 2012.
Currently, Combs is being detained in a New York City detention center. He was initially denied bail on Tuesday September 17th by Judge Robyn F. Tarnofsky, citing his substance abuse and anger issues. Combs’s lawyer tried again on Wednesday to get him released on bail citing horrific conditions unfit for pretrial detention. Another judge, however, Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr., responded to the request, “there is no condition or combination of conditions to ensure he will not obstruct justice or tamper with witnesses.”
FX’s “The Bear” Causes Controversy in the Comedy Category again at the 2024 Emmy Awards
Garnering the most nominations for a comedy series in Emmy history, FX’s “The Bear” caused ripples of hostility, albeit with a sarcastic slant, during the ceremony on Sunday night. “The Bear” was nominated for 23 Emmy awards and walked away with a Best Lead Actor in a comedy series to Jeremy Allen White, Best Supporting Actor and Actress in a comedy series to and Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Liza Colon-Zayas.
The hostility comes in the form of the question of whether popular series is an actual comedy. The show deals with themes of suicide, depression with a dramatic and tense atmosphere that pointedly lacks outright comedy. Emmy hosts, father and son comedic actors, Dan and Eugene Levy, who starred in a produced the popular Emmy winning series, “Schitt’s Creek,” poked fun at “The Bear’s” recognition as a comedy in their opening monologue. “Some of you might be expecting us to make a joke about whether “The Bear” is really a comedy, but in the true spirit of “The Bear,” we will not be making any jokes.
Actors were even hounded with questions by reporters about “The Bear’s” placement in the comedy category. “The Bear” actor, Moss Bachrach commented, “Comedy, drama, who cares, man?” Of course, the show’s placement in the comedy category caused drama over social media. The consensus falling somewhere between the show having funny characters, but it being overall a humorless endeavor.
Surprisingly, HBO/Max’s comedy series “Hacks” took home the award for Outstanding Comedy Series. As with all seemingly subjective awards, the Academy “reserves the right to review and change category placements.” Previously, 30 minutes shows were considered comedies, whereas longer episodic shows were automatically considered dramas, but the rules about what makes a show a drama as a opposed to a comedy has steadily changed since 2015. Most notably when “Orange is the New Black,” an hour long series, was switched from comedy to the drama category after it was forced to file a petition in 2015 to continue consideration as a comedy. The petition was denied. That same year, however, several hour long series’ successfully petitioned to be considered comedies, including “Glee,” Shameless,” and “Jane the Virgin.”
Not to be outshone, “Shogun” received the most nominations of the night and won best drama, best actor and actress in a drama series for Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai, along with several Creative Arts Emmy Awards. All in all, “Shogun” took a total of 18 Emmys. The most awards for a show in a single series in Emmy history.
Ken Paxton is Suing Harris County again to Block its guaranteed income program
Back in June 2023, Harris County announced “Uplift Harris,” a program to use $20.5 million in COVID 19 relief to provide “no-strings-attached $500 monthly cash payments to 1,928 Harris County residents for 18 months.” At the time, the Democratic-controlled Harris County Commissioner’s Court approved the program, while Senator Paul Bettancourt, R-Houston, called the program illegal requesting that Paxton issue a formal opinion. Paxton cited the Texas Constitution which prohibits “any county, city, town or other political corporation or subdivision of the State … to grant public money or thing of value in aid of, or to any individual.” In addition, the federal government, regarding COVID 19 relief money, stipulated that the funds could only be used for COVID 19 related programs.
In April, Paxton successfully sued to stop the program and in June, the Texas Supreme Court prohibited any payments be made through the fund. Undeterred, the Harris County Commissioners Court voted to move forward with the program with modifications addressing the Supreme Court decision and a new name, the “Harris 2.0 Handout” program.
Anticipating state intervention of the program, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo reported, “if the state gets in the way of this and the program becomes stuck in court again, then the funds [will] be reallocated to programs that already exist to support people living in poverty.”
In response, Paxton fled a lawsuit in a Harris County district court, naming the county judge Hidalgo, commissioners and the county public health director as defendants, arguing that “Harris 2.0 Handout” is illegal and violates several sections of the Texas Constitution and state government code in the same way as the initial program.
“In addition to being unconstitutional, [county officials] lack any legal authority – constitutional or statutory – to create and implement the Harris 2.0 Handout.”
The Harris 2.0 Handout would allocate the $20.5 million in ARPA money to the same qualified individuals for the same period of time as the initial plan. Christian Menefee, attorney for Harris County, expects to defend the new program in court, arguing, “[the county] incorporated guidance from the Texas Supreme Court by limiting the categories of items participants could purchase with the funds. [The opposition] Is not [concerned] for the law; [they’re] using people living in poverty as a means to score political points.”
