NEW YORK — After six weeks and 60 witnesses, Sean "Puffy" Combs' fate now rests with a Manhattan jury.

The seven men and five women spent six hours Wednesday poring over evidence in the weapons possession and bribery case before being sent to a hotel for the night. The panel will be sequestered until a verdict is reached.

If convicted, Combs, the 31-year-old head of Bad Boy Entertainment, faces 15 years in prison and the potential demise of his record, fashion and restaurant empire.

"He's confident, but obviously he's concerned that the jury comes to a verdict that is appropriate," defense lawyer Benjamin Brafman said of his client at a news conference held minutes after the judge lifted the gag order in the court.

His client appeared relaxed as the jury deliberated. Combs sauntered through the packed hallway outside the court in a stone-colored suit with a white handkerchief in his breast pocked. He chatted with his mother, high-fived friends and hugged a timid fan who approached to wish him well. At one point, he even spun into a dance move as he walked back to court.

"Nervous energy," a defense lawyer explained.

The charges against Combs and two co-defendants, bodyguard Anthony "Wolf" Jones and rapper Jamal "Shyne" Barrow, stem from a Dec. 27, 1999, shooting at Club New York, a Times Square disco where the trio was partying with Combs' then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez.

After an argument broke out between Combs' entourage and another group of patrons, guns were pulled and three bystanders struck. Barrow, an artist on Combs' label, is accused of shooting the three and Combs of firing a bullet into the air.

Combs and Jones are charged with offering their chauffeur, who spirited them from the scene in a custom SUV, $50,000 and a diamond ring to take the rap for a 9mm gun found in the car. According to prosecutors, a second gun was flung from the getaway car as police pursued.

Jones, like Combs, is charged with bribing a witness and also faces second- and third-degree weapons charges. Barrow is charged with attempted murder and reckless endangerment, which each carry a sentence of up to 25 years. He also faces two assault charges and two weapons charges.

In its first day of deliberations, the jury seemed to have focused on Barrow. At 2:30, the panel asked to see diagrams of the club showing where the up-and-coming rap artist was standing in relation to the three shooting victims. At 4:30, jurors asked the judge to re-explain the law concerning the most serious charges against Barrow, including attempted murder and assault.

Earlier in the day, Solomon spent two hours charging the jury on the law and explaining how to fill out verdict sheets for each defendant. In a case that turns on eyewitness testimony, the judge told the jurors that they alone must evaluate the credibility of each person who took the stand and decide whether to believe their entire account, some of it or none at all.

"There is no magic formula by which a jury can assess the credibility of a witness," he said.

He also instructed the seven blacks and five whites, a majority of whom are civil servants, to "make every effort to harmonize" their views.

"You should listen and seriously consider the views of your fellow jurors and be open to reason," he said.

Three alternate jurors were dismissed before the jury was sent to begin deliberating. One, a black man in his 30s, commented that he was not disappointed to be dismissed but did not want to make specific remarks about the trial.

"After six weeks, I just don't want to say anything," he said.

The crowd that gathered outside the court to await a verdict was not so circumspect. Dozens of teenagers carrying "Not Guilty" signs massed across the street from the courthouse. They booed prosecutor Matthew Bogdanos as he left court and cheered heartily for Combs and his lawyers.

Defense lawyer Benjamin Brafman, an observant Jew in a pinstripe blue suit, looked tickled as the crowd of young African-American teens, most sporting parkas and baseball hats, serenaded him to his car with chants of "Benjamin, Benjamin!"

The jury will resume deliberations at 10 a.m. Thursday.