Joseph Rose v. Sean Combs

In 2022, Joseph Rose, a personal trainer working with celebrities, was invited to an exclusive awards show afterparty hosted by Sean Combs in Los Angeles after a fashion designer, a client, shared videos of his distinctive workouts with Combs, who expressed interest in featuring him in a video. On June 27, 2022, a black Lincoln Navigator escorted Rose to Combs’ Hollywood Hills residence. At the entrance, a Combs associate required Rose to sign a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) without providing a copy, as a condition of entry. The associate then handed Rose a tequila soda with cranberry juice mixer, instructing him to drink it to gain entry. Rose took several sips and entered, feeling at ease after seeing a familiar model client among numerous celebrities. A Combs associate guided Rose from a large room with red lights to a smaller room where about a dozen individuals, including well-known figures, were engaging in group sexual activities. Rose began feeling disoriented, dizzy, and weak, realizing he had been drugged, far beyond the effects of a single drink. Combs approached, removed Rose’s pants, and performed non-consensual oral sex on him. Combs then coerced Rose, under the influence of the drugs, to perform oral sex on another individual, referred to as Celebrity A, who afterward spat into Rose’s mouth. Unable to resist due to the drugs’ effects, Rose was forced into sexual acts with multiple men and women at the party, who passed his drugged body around for their sexual enjoyment. The drugs caused intermittent loss of consciousness, and Rose ultimately blacked out for an extended period. Upon regaining consciousness, he found himself outside his apartment, disoriented, shirtless, and without his phone, unaware of how he was transported there. The assault caused severe emotional and psychological trauma, financial harm, and significant loss of livelihood.

Past, present, and future general and special damages, including lost earnings and economic damages; statutory damages; costs of suit; interest as allowed by law; punitive or exemplary damages; attorney’s fees pursuant to Civil Code sections 51.9(b), 52, 52.4; and other relief deemed just by the court.