On the witness stand of the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs sex trafficking trial on Wednesday was psychologist Dawn Hughes, a board certified clinical and forensic psychologist. Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He rejected a plea deal prior to the trial and faces up to life in prison if convicted. Court heard Hughes is an experienced witness, having been involved in high-profile cases, including testifying in the 2022 defamation trial of Amber Heard and Johnny Depp. Hughes also acknowledged she was being paid $600 an hour for her work and $6,000 for a day of testimony in court. Prior to her testimony, Judge Arun Subramanian ruled Hughes could not provide her opinion on certain topics, including the concept of coercive control nor the credibility of the accusers in this case. Hughes told the court she had not assessed any of the victims or witnesses nor has she interviewed anyone connected to the case, saying she was testifying as a “blind expert” providing the jury with information about domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, and traumatic stress. .Under questioning by Assistant US Attorney Mitzi Steiner, Hughes said it’s common for victims to stay in abusive relationships and perpetrators often use various abusive methods, beyond just physical violence, to make victims feel trapped. It was an allusion to the relationship between Combs and former girlfriend Cassie Ventura, who testified last week about Combs control of her, revealing a decade of sex parties called "freak-offs." Hughes said sexual abuse is “a very private harm,” which can make it difficult for a victim to seek help to leave an abusive relationship. “They experience a tremendous amount of shame, humiliation, degradation,” she said.Even abusive relationships can include love and kindness, creating a "trauma bond" which can make a victim unwilling to leave the relationship, said Hughes and often times it takes multiple attempts for victims to leave abusive relationships. Hughes said perpetrators use various abusive methods, beyond just physical violence, to make victims feel trapped and when an abuser has control of the victim’s general living expenses, it’s difficult for the victim to see a way out. “It’s about the power and control that the abuser has over the victim,” she said. .Victims rarely talk about the abuse as it’s happening, said Hughes. “They experience a tremendous amount of shame, humiliation, degradation,” she said. “They don’t want to talk about it. They don’t even want to think about it in their own brain.” “Many victims will wait months, even years, before telling about what happened to them,” said Hughes, adding victims tend not to recall each specific time they were abused and often use minimizing and hedging language when disclosing the abuse. Hughes said a victim may commonly say something like, “I know I got punched a bunch of times but can’t tell you when that was.” “There’s this pattern of returning and reconciliation, and then returning again,” she testified. Victims could want to come back to “the good version of their partner that they still do love” and they may also return because the abuse is still continuing outside of the relationship. A victim’s coping mechanisms usually exist within the confines of the relationship, and this can include fighting back, but the most common coping mechanism is trying to work things out with the abusive partner to stop the abuse and “preserve the love,” said Hughes. .Hughes explained there are two types of self-defence. Passive self-defence includes being “the least provoking as possible to get the violent episode to stop, including blocking punches or curling up on the floor,” she said. “Active self-defence includes throwing objects or hitting back against abuse. Victims use active self-defence to have some way of standing up for themselves, although in many cases that usually results in more severe injury to themselves.” During her testimony last week, Ventura said she often "numbed" herself from the abuse, which Hughes said was quite common for victims in abusive relationships. “Victims will often take drugs or drink before they see their partner,” she said, “preventively to ward off other physical or psychological pain to come.” Abuse victims often use minimizing and hedging language when disclosing the abuse, said Hughes. “They don’t want to label themselves (as) a victim,” she said. “They don’t want to label their abuser as an abuser. It’s too painful to admit that ‘somebody who loved me did this to me.’ They’re still in self-blame.” After the prosecution’s questioning, Defence Attorney Jonathan Bach asked Hughes to confirm she had not gathered detailed information about the specific facts of this case. .Hughes said that was correct, adding, “I’m not rendering any opinions about a specific individual.” When asked, Hughes said she’s heard there’s someone named “Cassie” in this case. Bach confirmed the forensic psychologist didn’t hear Cassie’s testimony or review records about her or her drug use. The trial continues Thursday morning.
