In December of 2025, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs filed an appeal demanding his immediate release from prison. He was convicted on two counts of transportation for prostitution, and was sentenced to four years and two months in federal prison, a $500,000 fine, and five years of supervision following his release. Combs began serving his time in October of 2025 after he had already spent a year detained.
The appeal was filed on December 23, 2025 by Comb’s team, who argued that his sentencing was excessive and harsh. They stated that the encounters he was charged for were consensual and there was no criminal intent involved in the actions that led to his conviction. Furthermore, it was stated that in similar cases to Combs’, defendants usually are sentenced to less than fifteen months, a much shorter sentence than what was granted to Sean Combs.
Combs’ team also stated in the appeal that the Judge in his sentencing, Judge Arun Subramanian, did not act fairly and was biased in his decision. Their argument is that he did not follow proper sentencing guidelines and allowed for acquitted charges to influence the final decision. Combs’ team is also pushing to appeal the conviction as a whole, maintaining that the sexual interactions and filming of such are protected by the First Amendment, and that all actions were consensual between both parties.
This is the first formal appeal that Sean Combs and his team have filed for his release and the reversal of his conviction. They have also asked for an expedited appeal, which would lead to a fast tracked review from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. The final decision on the appeal is to be made by February 20, 2026 by federal prosecutors.
