In a shocking turn of events, Diddy is beefing up his criminal defense team and adding Young Thug‘s YSL RICO trial lawyer Brian Steel to his federal sex trafficking and RICO case in Manhattan, New York. Before the news, TMZ first reported that Diddy, born Sean Combs, was searching for a Black female attorney to join his current trial team of Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos. Previously, in February, attorney Anthony Ricco ditched the team ahead of Diddy’s May 5 trial start.
On Tuesday (April 15), Brian Steel, who represented Atlanta rapper Young Thug, born Jeffery Williams, in his YSL racketeering case in Georgia, filed a motion for admission in Diddy’s federal sex trafficking and racketeering case in New York. In the filing, Steel asked the United States Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York to allow him to “appear as counsel for Sean Combs.”
While sharing his legal background, Steel continued to write:
“I am a member in good standing of the Bar of the State of Georgia and there are no pending disciplinary proceedings against me in any state or federal court. I have never been convicted of a felony. I have never been disbarred or denied admission or readmission by any court. I have been administratively suspended (then reinstated) and censured (but then vindicated) by courts and provide the facts and circumstances surrounding those instances in the attached affidavit.”
Brian Steel Expected To Be ‘Phenomenal Addition’ To Diddy’s Legal Team
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As mentioned in his filing, Steel, a highly regarded criminal defense attorney, famously took a contempt charge from the original judge in Young Thug’s nearly two-year RICO trial. His dramatic on-camera arrest went viral after refusing to reveal how he heard about a controversial conversation between the judge, prosecutors, and a key witness. Ultimately, the contempt charge was dropped and the judge was removed from the case.
Speaking with Rolling Stone, fellow lawyer Douglas Weinstein, who represented Young Thugs’s co-defendant Deamonte “Yak Gotti” Kendrick, said:
“Brian is a legend, especially after YSL. His insights, tenacity, and character will be a phenomenal addition to Mr. Combs’ team. I saw it in person during the YSL trial. I wish I could be a fly on the wall with whatever happens. He’s a legend in Georgia.”
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