The federal trial of R. Kelly over child pornography and obstruction charges in Chicago ended today (September 14) after the jury reached a verdict. Kelly was found guilty on three of four child pornography charges for videotaping himself having sex with his 14-year-old goddaughter.
Kelly was also found guilty on three of five counts of enticement of a minor. The singer was found not guilty on charges of conspiring to receive child pornography and charges of conspiring to obstruct justice in his 2002 Cook County case. The jurors reportedly deliberated for just under 11 hours. U.S. Attorney John Lausch told reporters that Kelly could face 10 to 90 years in prison for the convictions he received, reports the Chicago Tribune.
“We hope that today’s conviction brings ‘Jane,’ the plaintiff, some sense of healing and justice,” said RAINN’s director of media relations, Erinn Robinson, in a statement. “Many of those abused by Kelly are women of color, and for this community, the cases against R. Kelly have particular significance. We want survivors from marginalized communities to see more examples like this where their voices are heard and experiences are validated.”
Proceedings in Kelly’s federal trial have been underway since August. The charges centered on Kelly’s actions during his 2008 trial for child pornography—charges for which he was acquitted after the 14-year-old victim refused to testify. The now-37-year-old woman said Kelly coached her on what to say before the grand jury in 2008, flew her and her parents out of the country to make them unavailable to investigators and media, and continued to abuse her after he was acquitted. Four women testified against Kelly under pseudonyms throughout the course of the trial, alleging abuse. A fifth accuser declined to testify.
In June, Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison on a separate federal sex crimes case; he was found guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking in September 2021 in the Eastern District of New York. He sued the Metropolitan Detention Center Brooklyn shortly after his sentencing, claiming he was punitively placed under suicide watch despite having no thoughts of self-harm. Kelly currently also faces state-level charges in Illinois and Minnesota.
If you or someone you know has been affected by sexual assault, we encourage you to reach out for support:
RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline
http://www.rainn.org
1 800 656 HOPE (4673)
Crisis Text Line
http://www.facebook.com/crisistextline (chat support)
SMS: Text “HERE” to 741-741
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