Diddy has scored a major legal victory today as Dawn Richard's lawsuit against him was dismissed from a Federal court, according to TMZ. Judge Katherine Polk Failla ruled that all 18 of Richard's claims could not be pursued at the Federal level, for a multitude of reasons.
What should be made abundantly clear about this ruling is that the judge did not give her opinion on the veracity of Richard's claims. Instead, the judge ruled that there were some filing errors, as well as other procedural issues that would hinder this case from ever seeing a trial.
For instance, 15 of Richard's allegations were outside of the statute of limitations. There were two other claims involving the song “Deliver Me," although copyright issues led to those claims being dismissed as well. Lastly, the judge felt as though the gender-motivated violence claim should be tried in a state court and not a Federal one.
Diddy Scores Legal Win
In fact, the judge gave Richard and her legal team a glimmer of hope by suggesting an alternative route. New York City has a Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Act, which allows for women to pursue legal action regardless of how much time has passed. Richard's lawyers have made it clear that this will be her next step.
“We’re certainly disappointed in the dismissals,” attorney Arick Fudali of The Bloom Firm explained. “However, we’re very encouraged that the judge chose not to dismiss with prejudice, and basically just refer the Gender Motivated Violence Act claim to state court. We feel very confident in the Gender Motivated Violence Act claims. We believe those are our primary claims anyway. We’re encouraged with the ability to pursue our Gender Motivated Violence Act claims in state court."
This is a developing story that we will continue to follow.
