The famous singer R. Kelly, who celebrated success with the song “I believe I can fly”, has been in prison for years on various charges. Amid the delays in the trials due to Covid and the attacks in the cell, the 30-year prison sentence came last June.
The court dispute saw and sees the accused singer R kelly it continues unabated. Over the years, the American music producer has not only been the subject of further allegations of violence from women and minors, but also of assaults in his cell. Fights that took place while waiting for the trials, which were constantly postponed due to the pandemic.
R. Kelly in Chicago Jail – Source Ansa Photo
The beginning of R. Kelly’s nightmare
It was 1994 when the 27-year-old singer R kelly He decided to marry the 15-year-old aspiring singer Aaliyah Haughton. A marriage that brought some bad tempers and was later proven to be authorized by a false document. Two years later, allegations by other girls that they had suffered physical harm and emotional pressure began. As if that wasn’t enough, among other testimonies, he was nailed in 2002 on 21 child pornography charges that ended with an arrest in Florida.
Between constant complaints and a documentary dedicated to him, between music and scandals, R. Kelly was arrested in 2019 for criminal sexual abuse of 3 underage girls and an adult in 10 counts. Temporary jail avoidance was $100,000 bail before receiving a new incarceration order and no ability to post bail in July of that year.
This time they added among the other charges: “kidnapping, forced labour, sexual exploitation of minors and production of child pornography and obstruction of justice”.
The delay in the trials for the American singer
When arrested in July 2019, R. Kelly immediately pleaded not guilty, albeit unsuccessfully, as he remained in his cell at Chicago’s Metropolitan Correctional Center. During the trial, which took place three weeks after his arrest, Kelly claimed he only belonged to an organization set up by the managers and his assistants with the sole intention of promoting his music.
The judge Tiscione not only decided to dismiss his defense, but refused him again, leaving him in prison on bail. To further aggravate his mental and physical ailments, which are shown by the unkempt beard and the weight gain, also by the beginning of the Covid 19 pandemic. A virus that blocked the entire global justice system, including its processes. His lawyers tried in vain to get him released to prevent the post-coronavirus prison pathologies from worsening.
Incarceration in the Chicago Jail, lack of socialization with the other inmates, and being isolated for his safety (due to a fight in his cell) did nothing but put his mental and physical health in even greater jeopardy. Calls for his release, made by his friends and supporters on Twitter out of concern for his fate, were unsuccessful.
Sentenced to 30 years in prison
The moment the pandemic alert returned, the whole world started functioning as before, including the American justice system. Indeed, on June 29, 2022, R kelly was found guilty by a New York court of having recruited women and minors for sexual reasons.
To get him to have his sentence reduced, his attorney also tried to use the jury’s good heart by recalling that Kelly himself had been a victim of abuse in the past. But to his misfortune, the application was summarily rejected, which led to a prison sentence of 30 years.