Diddy scored a legal win after a judge tossed out most of the claims brought by former Da Band member Sara Rivers in her $60 million lawsuit.
Per TMZ, 21 of the 22 counts were dismissed with prejudice on Thursday (August 14), meaning they can’t be refiled. The sole remaining claim — under the Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act — is on hold while Judge Rakoff waits for a higher court’s ruling before deciding whether to dismiss it with or without prejudice.
“We have said these claims were meritless, time-barred, and legally deficient. The Court agreed, finding no legal basis to allow them to proceed,” a rep for Diddy told Complex. “We are pleased the Court carefully analyzed and swiftly dismissed these baseless claims.”
Rivers, who appeared on MTV’s Making the Band as Sara Stokes, had accused Combs of sexual harassment, assault, battery, “inhumane” working conditions, and more in her February filing. The suit also named MTV, Universal Music, several former Bad Boy staffers, Combs’ mother Janice, and ex-assistant Fonzworth Bentley.
She claimed Combs cornered her in a hallway, spoke to her in a “low, sensual voice,” and touched her breasts after adjusting her jacket collar. Rivers also repeated a shocking allegation from the Peacock docuseries The Making of a Bad Boy, in which she said Combs once told her he was so angry he wanted to eat a group member’s flesh.
The lawsuit further alleged she was forced into “uncompensated manual labor,” citing the infamous cheesecake walk, and that Combs controlled her sleep and diet while mocking her battle with bulimia.
Rivers’ lawyer, Ariel Mitchell, told TMZ they plan to appeal the 21 dismissed counts, saying, “We look forward to more litigation specifically against Mr. Combs.”
