Kristin Chenoweth had a surprising response when asked about the ongoing sex trafficking case against Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs.
The 56-year-old told TMZ in New York City Monday that she was ‘still praying’ for the hip-hop mogul, 55, as he remains imprisoned in New York in connection with the trafficking and racketeering crimes he’s charged with.
‘It’s bad – it’s really bad,’ the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma native told the outlet of the allegations against Diddy, as she was whisked away from signing autographs by an associate.
The Broadway star on May 17 took to X/Twitter invoking her faith after seeing the March 5, 2016 clip on CNN in which Combs had physically attacked his ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura.
The Pushing Daisies star said that she found the situation ‘heartbreaking’ as she ‘used to love’ Combs. (She later revealed it triggered flashbacks to abuse she past suffered.)
Kristin Chenoweth, 56, had a surprising response when asked about the ongoing sex trafficking case against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, 55. Pictured October 21 in NYC
The hip-hop mogul remains imprisoned in connection with the trafficking and racketeering crimes he’s charged with. Pictured in NYC at the 2018 Met Gala
Chenoweth said in a subsequent tweet: ‘Honestly i have my reasons for the Sean Combs video bothering me so much. The main thing i need to do is pray for him. For real.’
Chenoweth responded to a number of her followers who disagreed with her assessment, praising some for their ‘grown up tweets;’ saying she was praying for Combs’ family as well; and saying that ‘only God can forgive him.’
Chenoweth later said that she stood by the initial tweet despite the controversy it caused.
‘I can’t delete it,’ Chenoweth said. ‘Believe me i was sick when i saw it and so thankful she was ok. He is NOT. He is ill. Sick. Only God can forgive him. So forgive me but that’s how i think. And pray. Xo.’
Combs filed a new request for bail on Friday, saying changed circumstances, along with new evidence, mean he should be allowed to prepare for a May trial from outside jail.
Lawyers for Combs filed the request in Manhattan federal court, where his previous requests for bail have been rejected by two judges since his September arrest on racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges.
He has pleaded not guilty to charges that he coerced and abused women for years with help from a network of associates and employees, while silencing victims through blackmail and violence, including kidnapping, arson and physical beatings.
He has been awaiting a May 5 trial at a federal detention facility in Brooklyn.
The Broadway star reacted May 17 after seeing the March 5, 2016 clip on CNN in which Combs had physically attacked his ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura
Chenoweth later said that she stood by the initial tweet despite the controversy it caused
In their new court filing, lawyers for Combs say they are proposing a ‘far more robust’ bail package that would subject the entertainer to strict around-the-clock security monitoring and near-total restrictions on his ability to contact anyone but his lawyers.
But the amount of money they attach to the package remains $50 million, as they proposed before. They also cite new evidence that they say ‘makes clear that the government’s case is thin.’
That evidence, the lawyers said, refutes the government’s claim that a March 2016 video showing Combs physically assaulting his then-girlfriend occurred during a coerced ‘freak-off,’ a sexually-driven event described in the indictment against Combs.
They wrote that the encounter was instead ‘a minutes-long glimpse into a complex but decade-long consensual relationship’ between Combs and his then-girlfriend.
The lawyers argued that the jail conditions Combs is experiencing at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn violate his constitutional rights to participate in his defense.
