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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was convicted on prostitution-related charges
under the Mann Act. Here’s what to know about the 1910 law
By Karina Tsui, CNN
Updated:
9:35 AM EDT, Thu July 3, 2025
Source: CNN
After seven weeks of intense, emotional and sometimes graphic
testimony, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was Wednesday of the most serious
charges in his sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial. The
hip-hop mogul, however, was convicted on two lesser
prostitution-related charges under the federal Mann Act.
The Mann Act, enacted in 1910 and originally known as the
“White-Slave Traffic Act,” criminalizes transporting individuals
across state lines for prostitution.
Its language, which legal scholars have defined as vague, has led to
controversial prosecutions, including against Black champion
heavyweight boxer Jack Johnson in 1913.
It was more recently used in high-profile cases, including against R&B
singer R. Kelly and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, a longtime
confidante of convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Here’s what we know:
A law once used against interracial couples
According to the original text of the Mann Act, an individual could be
convicted for transporting a woman or girl across state lines “for
the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral
purpose.” But the original language around an “immoral purpose”
was considered vague – and meant the law was used to punish
consensual sexual activity and common sex work, often against Black
defendants. It was removed from the act by an amendment in the 80s.
The law’s broad wording and subsequent Supreme Court interpretation
once allowed prosecutors to bring cases against “,” according to
Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute.
In 1913, an all-White jury convicted Johnson under the Mann Act for
transporting a White woman – reported to be his girlfriend – across
state lines.
Johnson served just under a year in prison, and the conviction derailed
his career. in 2018.
The Mann Act has since been amended several times and now across state
lines “with intent that such individual engage in prostitution, or in
any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal
offense.”
Combs’ defense claimed Mann Act is racist
in February the Mann Act has a racist history, claiming he was targeted
for being a powerful Black man.
“What was racist in its inception has often been racist in its
operation,” his attorneys said in a court filing, claiming no White
person had faced a similar prosecution.
Prosecutors denied allegations of racism, arguing that most of Combs’
accusers are people of color, reported. “He baselessly accused the
government of engaging in a racist prosecution,” one of the
prosecutors told the judge at , adding that the accusations posed a
“serious risk” for a fair trial.
The aim of the mogul’s attorneys was to get the transportation to
engage in prostitution charges
In 2021, was convicted under another provision of the Mann Act for
transporting minors with the intent to engage in criminal sexual
activity.
She was also found guilty of charges including .
Maxwell, who helped set up a scheme to lure young women into sexual
relationships with Epstein, is currently serving a 20-year sentence.
R. Kelly, the disgraced R&B singer who is currently serving a 30-year
sentence, was also convicted in 2021 of , after he was found guilty of
using his fame to ensnare victims he sexually abused. He was also
convicted on one charge of racketeering.
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