Today, August 15, R. Kelly’s federal trial began in Chicago with selection of the jury. He is currently on trial for child pornography and obstruction charges of which he was originally indicted for in July 2019. According to Pitchfork, the trial was officially scheduled to begin in April 2020, however, the Covid-19 pandemic forced the postponement.
Kelly’s attorney requested that during the jury selection any potential juror who had watched the 2019 documentary Surviving R. Kelly be dismissed from service. Judge Harry Leinenweber ultimately denied the request. The jury pool now stands at 34 out of the original 60.
The federal trial follows Kelly’s 2008 trial in which he was acquitted of 14 counts of child pornography. He was accused of allegedly filming child pornography of an underage woman but the jury could not testify to the woman’s identity as she had refused to testify in court. Now, prosecutors are claiming that Kelly and his team had allegedly paid victims and witness in order to keep them from testifying.
Kelly was convicted of sex trafficking and racketeering in September 2021. Shortly after being sentenced to 30 years in prison for the offenses, he was placed on suicide watch. In early July he was taken off of suicide watch after suing the detention facility claiming that it was an alleged punishment for his status as celebrity. Kelly will also be standing trial for felony charges for alleged prostitution of a minor in Minnesota. His cases have continued to make headlines. Kelly’s associates have been accused of allegedly threatening to commit a mass shooting at a screening of Surviving R. Kelly, arson and bribery. In October 2021, YouTube responded by taking Kelly’s channels off their platform.
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