Sam Morris
Appearances
The Trial of Diddy
He Was So Interesting To The Hilfigers, The Trumps, The Winfreys
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The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And as soon as that person was stabbed, out of nowhere, my cellmate grabbed me and pulled me back into the cell. And his advice, which is something that I would give anyone going in that situation is, get back to your cell, stay out of it. Keep in mind that most of my clients will never see that. They self-surrender to the prison camp. There is no violence in a prison camp.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
You can't be convicted of a violent offense if you're in a prison camp. Now, in the examples of Sean Combs or Mangione, anyone else that I'm aware of on that floor, my advice would be, if you are found guilty, you need to get to a United States penitentiary. That's the highest level facility. That's where they will go. That you will be able to live. Not live well, not live successfully, but live.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
If that's the best you can offer someone and their family, that they will be able to live and not get hurt or die. Really kind of put that in context as far as what any potential upside is.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
A lot of the attorneys I work with bring me in almost as a therapist. They get very frustrated dealing with the defendant because to a defendant, regardless of the charge, as a defendant, we bury our heads in the sand. We are the epitome of a stork and we are in denial.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
You know, the five stages of grief, we are in denial and defendants overwhelmingly are in denial until the judge renders a sentence if found guilty or they plead guilty. And it doesn't really sink in to most people until the judge bangs that gavel and the sentence of a period of time in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons is read.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Prior to that, there's a lot of wishful thinking and hopeful thinking and optimism that I think most intelligent defendants will have. Their attorneys will get them out of this. God will get them out of this. They will get themselves out of it. President Trump will get them out of it.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
There's a lot of wishful thinking until that judge reads those words, you are remanded to the custody of the Bureau of Prisons. My job is to prepare them. As someone who's been through it, it's easier for me to explain it to them.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
I would say probably 40% of my work is with families. It is not uncommon at all. for a family member to call. Okay. So my client who's in Brooklyn on Sunday, I received a call from his family. I haven't heard from my husband in two days. He calls me normally twice a day. I'm very worried what's going on. And that's, you know, when I realized that there's a lockdown.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Yes. I always know who to call at each facility in order to find out what's going on. Now, if the person goes to the hospital due to HIPAA, they're not going to disclose confidential information, but they can say, listen, he was taken to the hospital. He'll be okay. At least I can share that with the spouse or a loved one. The Bureau of Prisons is a black hole. Once you're in it,
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
There is no information that comes out unless you know how to get it out or navigate that system.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So I've had a number of clients, three clients that have been on that floor at one time or another. I also had a number of January 6th clients that were in the facility, although not on that floor. They all told me that he is a very interesting fellow. He was calm. He's taking it as well as can be expected.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Nothing that one would not expect from somebody that's used to the ultimate amount of freedom, luxury, being totally unencumbered to now being told when to go to bed, when to get up, when to shower, when to use a phone, when to use a computer, when to eat, when to stand by your bed and be counted. So it is a deeply demoralizing effect when you're in there.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
But I'm told that all the guys on that floor are friendly. They get along. They play board games, chess, checkers, backgammon with each other. They watch TV together. They're very cordial towards each other because when you're in prison, you're the same as the guy next to you, regardless of your wealth or public stature. You all get $360 a month to spend in commissary.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
You all get the same outfit to wear. You all get the same set of headphones. You get the same meals, same visiting privileges. So whether you're a billionaire or you're a vagrant on the street that's arrested, You all get the same thing. You're a number. You are an eight-digit number.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
When the guy comes around and counts you and asks you to identify yourself, you don't identify yourself as Sean Combs. You identify yourself as your eight-digit BOP number.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
No, as far as I know, no. The last time I spoke with anyone, his name came up. He sat on the general population floor. They played, you know, spades, the card game.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
It was around holiday time, so I believe he was as depressed as any other guy that was there that couldn't be with their family because obviously you have restricted visits and how long you can be with someone and how many visitors can come in. So it is a depressing time, but he was friendly and congenial as everyone else on that floor. I'm sure he laughed at times.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
It's not a funny situation to be in, but they all look around and say, in their opinions, what a mockery of justice it is that they are here. They're all still pre-sentence, pre-trial. So there's a lot of optimism still that they can hold.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Yes, yes. Wow. I mean, I'm sure he's interacting with them, but I haven't asked that recently.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So you're talking about physically, physically a target?
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Where he currently is, he's not a target. Where he currently is, he's safe. And that's why he is where he is. If I were consulting him, should he be found guilty, I would be working with his legal team to get him to the best facility based upon his sentence. Remember, because of his charges, which are very serious charges, he stands to serve upwards of 40 years to life in prison.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
In that situation, they will only send him to a high security or United States penitentiary. It is bad there. That's the worst of the worst.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So normally what's called under the First Step Act, they try to put somebody within 500 miles of their family. Ideally, in his situation, I would say that should not be a overwhelming concern that they need to get him to the safest facility.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So my comment would be, okay, let's get him to like a Tucson USP or somewhere that, again, he will have the opportunity to live his life, have visits with his family, but be safe. Not pleasant, but safe.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
He has to go in there very solid, very respectful of the jury. Let his attorney, you know, Mark Agniflo is an amazing attorney. Let his attorney handle the jury properly and through the voir dire process, figure out who's the best person to hear that case. Unfortunately, 98% of all federal charges, whether through a plea or through a trial, do lead to a conviction.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So overwhelmingly, the odds are stacked against him. I've only had, out of the hundreds and hundreds of people I've helped, only one client, a doctor in Pennsylvania, went to trial and won. So it is an anomaly to actually win. Preparing him is only so much that a consultant can do with serious charges like that. That's why I said most of my clients are white collar offenders.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Where I would really come in and be helpful is if he is found guilty, again, preparing him and his family for what's next. Because a USP is dramatically different than a detention center. And the strategies to get him the most amount of freedom as quickly as possible is something that I would want to work with him on.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
But first and foremost, if found guilty, where to get him to a place that he's safe, that his family knows he's safe, so that he can then institute whatever strategies we can put into place for him given those circumstances.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Sure. So I would actually recommend that if he is found guilty and depending upon the length of the sentence and what he's found guilty of, that he would go to a USP, United States Penitentiary, which is the highest level security facility other than Ad Max in Florence, Colorado. probably in Tucson, Arizona.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
The reason I say that is that's where somebody has a life sentence that's convicted of a sex crime can serve safely. So where Sean Combs currently is, is a segregated, protected floor of 18 men. Now, it might not be full, but can hold 18 people, high profile, very safe. If he's found guilty and if he is transferred to a high security penitentiary, it is at that point that he could be in a prison
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
prison with 40 foot walls and gun towers and individual cells on a block that might hold 400 men.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And he's truly in a general population environment where when they are allowed outside, he's on a closed yard with potentially a thousand men under heavy guard security with controlled movement, which means they can only move around the facility in one direction at 10 minutes before the hour for 10 minutes.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And it is subject to substantial violence because in a high security facility, you will see the worst of the worst. People that have nothing to lose by catching another charge. Gang members, it's very common to see that. So the goal would be to get him to the safest of the high security facilities, which in my opinion currently is USP Tucson.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
where they have a sexual offender yard that is a protected yard. He would be amongst other sexual offenders that have lengthy sentences, but that for whatever reason might need a higher level of protection.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And even if somebody like Louis Mangione was convicted and found guilty and sentenced to a long period of time in the federal system, and it's not a sexual charge, I would still recommend going to a place like that because as of today, that is the safest of the United States penitentiaries in the system. Why is it considered the safest? Because of the population.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So if you think about the population, a higher propensity or population of sexual offenders... They don't put gang members there, or maybe they'll put gang dropouts there. So they really do their best to filter the population that goes in there. So it is certainly not a Four Seasons by any means in terms of the prison system, but it is the safest place where he will be able to survive. And live.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
That's it. Other than that, it is identical to every other high security facility.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
A judge can only make a recommendation. So again, when I work with my clients, we do a lot of work with our clients to figure out what's the best facility for them prior to sentencing. Then at sentencing, we have certain asks of the judge, which are strictly recommendations. And then once we get that, we, my firm, works with the Bureau of Prisons to get him to that facility.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So we asked for a judicial recommendation. Judicial recommendations are followed about 74% of the time, but it's no guarantee. It's strictly a recommendation. We then take the judicial recommendation, the judgment, and work with counsel and the Bureau of Prisons to get him there.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
That's very far away from New York. It is, but at least his family can come visit him as opposed to going someplace like Canaan USP in Pennsylvania that might be closer to him. But if you only survive a few weeks or a few months, there's a big picture here.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And if found guilty and the worst comes to the worst, you still want to be able to survive and see your children grow up when they come and visit and be able to communicate with them.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Well- A good legal team will always bring in a good consultant. I find that many lawyers do not know about us or a lot of them have what we call God complex and think they can handle it all. The best attorneys know their limitations and know when to bring in other members of the team, forensic psychologists, doctors, consultants.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
As of now, it's my understanding he does not. Would you suggest that he get one? I would. I strongly would. However, again, there are certain defendants that put their head in the sand and are convinced that they're going to beat the charge. And in their own mind, sometimes the notion of hiring a prison consultant is self-defeating. Like, okay, I've resigned myself to go to prison.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And if I don't hire a prison consultant, then maybe I won't go to prison. I don't know why that logic exists, but I've seen that.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
The best defense is a good offense, but I always tell my clients, imagine you're the conductor of the train. You drive the train. Everybody else works for you and will follow your instructions. The more knowledge you have about what's in front of you, what obstacles are in front of you, will make it a better ride or a more navigable ride. Can't guarantee the outcome by any means,
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
But the more information that you and your team have available to you, the better the decisions that you can make are. And at most of these junctures, a defendant only gets one bite at the apple. And if they screw up that bite, they have a much greater hurdle down the road.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
We work with defendants, their families, attorneys that are going through the federal criminal system. Overwhelmingly, the majority of our clients, probably 98%, are white-collar offenders.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
offenders that commit financial crimes, nonviolent crimes, those that are typically professionals, politicians that run afoul of various federal statutes and find themselves in the clutches of the Department of Justice.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
In 2016, I received a knock on my door. 17 men and women dressed in blue flak jackets with FBI stencil on the back arrested me. I had no idea why. I had been retired for a In the car ride up, I learned that I was being charged with a wire fraud from a prior company I was involved with. 2018, I went to sentencing.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
I was assured by my attorney that I was getting one year of home confinement and then some supervised release. The judges looked down at me and said, Mr. Mangle, you are no different than any vagrant on the street. You are actually worse. You clearly show no contrition, no remorse. You haven't identified with your victims. And therefore, I'm giving you a sentence of custody of 60 months.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Now, I've never been in trouble in my life. And I thought he said six months. I looked down at my attorney, who scribbled 60 on a piece of paper. And the only thing that would go through my mind, other than I was going to get sick on the table in front of me, was I was going to be away from my family for four years and two months, 85% of your sentence.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
The judge then remanded me to custody, highly unusual for white-collar offenders. And I began my sentence in the Philadelphia Detention Center. Almost a sister image of the Brooklyn Detention Center. I spent six weeks there and it was certainly quite scary in the beginning. It was someplace that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemies.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
After about six weeks, I had been transferred to the camp in Miami. I was out in 21 months. So I learned how to work within the system and navigate a system which really is not meant to be navigated. The other thing I learned is that there were people there that had advice from other people than their attorney prior to sentencing that got much better sentences and much better outcomes.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And I learned that there was a whole field of people called prison consultants.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Not only did I learn what it was like to be in a camp where I was in Miami, that's when I learned that, you know, There are things that can be done that no one could advise me of, did advise me of, that can help me get home sooner.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Now, I tell my clients and prospective clients that if we work together and you follow the protocol and the rules and do what's necessary, on average, my clients spend about 30% of their sentence in custody. I learned that proper preparation prior to sentencing knowing the environment you're going into.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And once you're there, knowing what programs to take, how to qualify for them, and ultimately how to prepare for your release, knowing that you're dealing with a system that has a rule book. And it's the same rule book that I had to follow that El Chapo who's in AdMax has to follow. It's one book for everyone.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
And it's not the Bureau of Prisons culture or job to help me or rehabilitate me to get out sooner. It's there to house me and feed me three meals a day. And if I wasn't proactive and doing what I had to do, they were more than happy to let me sleep there for four years and two months.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Actually, I do a lot of work with attorneys, but people that are just charged well before the plea or if they go to trial, most people do accept the plea.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Ideally from the very beginning. I occasionally, not often, thank God, receive phone calls the night before someone's scheduled to surrender. And there's only so much I can do in 24 hours. Yeah. It's difficult. I believe in being very hands-on. This is not a transactional business. This is about picking and choosing your clients so that you can give them the attention that
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
that they need and in many cases are not getting from their attorneys because attorneys typically, their job is to get you to sentencing and it ends there. Mine goes for what could be years after.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Well... On Friday, there was a major race riot at Brooklyn MDC. 45 people were injured. I'm told at least one casualty. Numerous people have been taken to the hospital. The detention center is on lockdown for at least one month. They're not allowing any visits other than legal visits, and even those are being strained.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
The only time an inmate can come out of their cell, so Diddy, as well as everyone else, in that facility, they are locked in their cell 24 hours a day.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
He's on what's called general population floor, even though I think it's 4W. It's a single-tiered floor. I was on a single-tiered floor that are usually used for more high-profile inmates. He's on the same floor as Sam Backman-Freed. I have a client that is a foreign national that's on that floor. I think he's one or two cells over from Sean Combs. Really?
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So typically you're allowed out from six in the morning until nine o'clock at night, other than when they do counts, when you have to go back in your cell, they lock you in, they do a standing count, and then you're allowed back out. So he's allowed out from usually six in the morning until nine o'clock at night.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So let me explain. General population is a loose term for you're not in protective custody. So either you're in protective custody, the SHU, special housing unit, or you're in general population. In his case, he's on it, which I believe is 4W. So it's a single tiered floor that has 18 men or 18 cells on the floor. Most of the cells are single man cells. Some are double man cells.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
But it is for high profile individuals, Luis Mangione, I believe the Alexander brothers, people that are very high profile and prone to extortion, prone to violence against them. The facility can't afford to have a high profile, certainly any inmate, but in this case, a high profile inmate get injured from another inmate. And because The MVC is a dangerous place.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Obviously, look what happened this Friday. They really can't adequately protect somebody like him unless he's on a segregated floor. So yes, they are in general population, but on a safer floor. Right, and then obviously he is alone in his cell. And he's locked down now. At least 23 out of 24. I'm sure they allow him out at least three times a week for a shower.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
maybe to make a phone call, but that's about it. So he's being fed in his cell. It's a six by nine cell, the little slap for a window. He's being fed in his cell. If he wants to exercise, it's in his cell. He can read in his cell. There are no TVs. And that's where he is and will be for the next month, other than legal visits.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
I know my client, as well as other clients, I work closely with another consultant that is actually a Mangione's consultant. They're clamoring for legal visits because it's the only time that they can get out of their cells to see people, interact with people.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
You can actually go onto the website and see that all visits are suspended. It is on lockdown. When I did some more inquiry and I spoke to one of the executive assistants at the facility, they went into some form of detail, as much as they could, as to what the situation was.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
They're not on a floor that would be susceptible to the riots. Again, they're on a floor with other high-profile individuals that the last thing they want to do is get involved in the riots. So they're on a truly segregated floor from everybody else. Now, they are punished the same as everyone else in the facility.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
Well, fortunately, while they might be safer, they will suffer the same consequences as everyone in that facility.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
No television. I mean, if they have a radio, they could probably listen to the radio and to the televisions that are being played on the unit, but they can't see it. They still get mail, but that's about it.
The Trial of Diddy
It's Certainly Not A Four Seasons
So I can say from firsthand experience, on my second morning at the Philadelphia Detention Center, I remember I had just gotten out of the shower and all of a sudden, out of the side of my eye, I saw one gentleman rush another gentleman in the shower next to me and stabbed him with a shank, something sharp.
The Trial of Diddy
All He Has Is Kanye in His Corner
The biggest secret in the entertainment industry that really wasn't a secret at all has finally been revealed to the world.
The Trial of Diddy
Millions and Millions of Dollars
The following episode explores a number of allegations regarding the artist Diddy. He denies all charges and has pled not guilty to sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution.
The Trial of Diddy
Millions and Millions of Dollars
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