Sean "Diddy" Combs got some serious federal charges, and a legal expert is shedding light on what could actually happen if he is found not guilty — and it doesn't really mean he didn't do anything wrong.

The 55-year-old is on trial after pleading not guilty to five federal counts, including sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transporting people across state lines for prostitution.

The case traces back to a slew of criminal and civil charges, some of which emerged after the singer Cassie Ventura, identified as Victim-1 in the indictment, filed a since-settled civil suit against him in late 2023.

Not Guilty Isn't the Same as Innocent

Criminal trials in the US demand "beyond a reasonable doubt" that a defendant is guilty, a standard that is intended to safeguard the rights of the accused — especially when the penalty may include life in prison. This strict standard of proof also means that a not guilty verdict isn't the same as being found to be factually innocent, says attorney Eric Mark.

"Being found not guilty is not the same as actually being innocent and it is not a finding of innocence," Mark told Mirror US. "Not guilty means the prosecution did not meet its high burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt."

While Diddy has denied all criminal and civil accusations against him, including those in lawsuits filed by multiple women, legal experts say civil cases operate under a different threshold.

"A civil lawsuit is subject to a lower burden of proof," Mark added, noting that it's easier for plaintiffs to succeed in civil court than in criminal court.

Defense Pushes Back Amid Damaging Footage

Diddy's trial, which began May 12, has already featured emotional testimony from witnesses, including Cassie. Prosecutors at the trial brought up footage from a Los Angeles hotel that seemed to show Diddy physically assaulting the "Me and U" singer in 2016. The video, which CNN first shared.

Though Diddy publicly acknowledged the altercation and said he took "full responsibility" at the time the footage was aired, his attorneys later claimed the video was "altered, manipulated, sped-up, and edited to be out of sequence." CNN has denied those claims. Prosecutors eventually submitted a different version of the video as evidence.

The defense conceded that Diddy committed acts of domestic violence against Cassie, but they argued those incidents do not amount to sex trafficking — the central charge in the case.

"Absolutely going to admit to domestic violence," Diddy's attorney Marc Agnifilo said in court. "But at what point does it become coercive?" He further stated the defense plans to "take the position there was mutual violence in their relationship," including physical altercations.

Diddy's legal team also stressed that he is not on trial for domestic violence, urging jurors to focus strictly on the charges filed.

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Diddy, Sean Combs