“The View” host Sunny Hostin was back in the courtroom for day two of the federal sex trafficking trial against former music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs on Tuesday. But after seeing the testimony of R&B singer Cassie, Hostin has some worries.
In her appearance on the stand, Combs’ former girlfriend testified that he abused, intimidated, coerced, blackmailed and sexually exploited her for years. In response to evidence that she consented to acts that Combs requested of her, Cassie — whose legal name is Cassandra Ventura — noted that “it’s hard to really be able to decide in that moment what you need when he’s telling you what he wants.”
Hostin also noted that Ventura explained that she stayed with Combs and agreed to the activities for a decade “because when you love someone, you want to make them happy, and you don’t want to make them angry.”
“Now, what I saw, as a former sex crimes prosecutor, is classic victim/survivor sexual grooming,” Hostin said. “He started pushing her boundaries and trauma bonded.”
That said, she admitted that when she looked at the jury to see how they were processing the information, it didn’t seem promising.
“In watching the jury, I also saw some of the jurors just not understanding how she didn’t just leave,” Hostin lamented. “And so I think that, in order for the prosecution to prove this case — and it’s a heavily male jury, there are 12 men and about 8 women, there are six alternates — I think they’re going to have to have an expert describe and explain that this is what happens in this kind of relationship.”
“Because I saw it clear as day,” she continued. “I don’t think the average person would see that.”
“The View” airs weekdays at 11 a.m. ET on ABC.
