DEDHAM, Mass. — The fate of former New England Patriots star Stefon Diggs is now in the hands of a Dedham District Court jury after the prosecution and defense in his assault trial rested their cases and delivered closing arguments on Tuesday.
Jamila Adams, the personal chef who accused Diggs of assault and attempted strangulation, returned to the witness stand for a final round of questioning before the prosecution rested its case on the second day of the trial. Diggs’ attorneys then called several witnesses before resting.
Judge Jeanmarie Carroll delivered instructions to the panel of jurors charged with deliberating Diggs’ fate after the closing arguments.
Diggs is accused of assaulting and attempting to strangle Adams inside his Dedham home in December. He has pleaded not guilty.
Adams was the first witness called by prosecutors on Monday. She remained under cross-examination by the defense on Tuesday morning, which continued challenging her credibility and version of events.
Defense attorneys pressed Jamila “Mila” Adams about money she said she was owed after working as a live-in chef. She testified she was paid about $2,000 a week and believed she had not been fully compensated after being sent home. They pointed to a $19,000 demand and said the amount increased over time, with her attorney later seeking $5.5 million.
When asked about the $5.5 million claim, Adams said, “I can’t speak on that,” and at other points told jurors, “I don’t understand the question,” and “I don’t know how to answer the question.”
Defense attorneys also questioned Adams about a public statement she issued Feb. 13 in which she said, “I have never sought money to settle this matter,” and about hiring a lawyer by mid-April. Adams said she retained an attorney for a workers’ compensation claim, saying she believed she had been injured on the job.
They challenged her accounting of what she was owed, presenting records of payments and suggesting she had sought compensation for weeks she did not work. Adams said she had been confused about the amount and “sent the incorrect amount,” maintaining she believed she was owed money.
Prosecutors pushed back on the defense’s financial-motive argument— Adams testified the dispute was about wages, not a settlement. She said her statement that she had “never sought money to settle this matter” referred to the criminal case and that she later retained an attorney for a workers’ compensation claim after she was injured on the job.
At times during her second day on the stand, Adams was instructed by the judge to answer questions directly and not include additional details beyond what was asked. Portions of her responses were struck from the record as nonresponsive, with jurors told to disregard them.
“This is not an opportunity for you to interject your own narrative,” Judge Carroll told her at one point, warning that continued nonresponsive answers could result in her testimony being stricken.
On the first day of testimony, Diggs walked quickly into court without speaking to reporters.
Under questioning from prosecutors, Adams became emotional as she described the alleged assault, saying Diggs began choking her. She testified that the incident at his Dedham home on Dec. 2, 2025, followed a heated exchange of text messages between the two over payments she said she was owed.
Defense attorneys have pushed back on Adams’ account, arguing the assault never happened. They pointed out that Adams did not take photos of any alleged bruising or marks and failed to disclose to police that she and Diggs were involved in what they described as an intimate relationship.
The defense also noted Adams was upset about being excluded from a trip to Miami and suggested that anger may have played a role in her allegations.
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Boston attorney Elyse Hershon, a legal analyst, said the defense aggressively highlighted inconsistencies in Adams’ testimony.
“We have to look at why she would lie about this, and the defense is bringing out information,” Hershon said. “She deleted text messages before she went to the police and showed an angry exchange between her and Diggs. That doesn’t look good. So something that doesn’t look good is something the defense will use in their closing — to really say you can’t believe her, you can’t trust her, she lied, she just wanted money.”
A jury was seated on Monday.
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