r kelly
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The lawyer for R. Kelly pleaded for the overturning of his sexual abuse conviction, claiming that prosecutors misused racketeering laws.
On Monday (March 18), the attorney for disgraced singer R. Kelly was in the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals which convened in Manhattan, NY, to appeal his convictions for running a decades-long scheme to recruit women and underage girls whom he sexually abused under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act or RICO law.
Attorney Jennifer Bonjean argued before the three-judge panel that the application used by federal prosecutors to gain those convictions was “preposterous.”
“The government has extended the RICO statute to a set of circumstances that is so beyond what the framers intended, which was to get at organized crime,” Bonjean said to the judges. “Now, we’re talking about an organization with an alleged criminal, but not organized crime.” Bonjean also argued that it framed Kelly and those he worked with in an improper light related to the charges, which also included the production of child pornography. “This was not a collection of people who had a purpose to recruit girls for sexual abuse or child pornography,” she said. “Whether they turned a blind eye, whether some of them suspected that some of these girls were underage, that’s a whole different matter.”
Assistant United States Attorney Kayla Crews Bensing argued on behalf of the government and refuted Bonjean’s claims.
“The defendant had a system in place that lured young people into his orbit and then took over their lives,” she told the panel of judges, pointing to evidence that those who worked with Kelly knew of his intent and actions. “This is all evidence that the jury was entitled to infer that Kelly’s inner circle knew what was going on: that he was recruiting and maintaining underage women for sexual activity,” Bensing stated.
Bonjean also encountered pushback from the judges. “RICO is looking at organizations, that are then used to commit criminal acts,” Judge Denny Chin said regarding Bonjean’s argument on RICO. “It doesn’t have to be a criminal organization. It could be a completely legitimate organization. But if it engages in racketeering activity, it violates RICO.”
The panel is expected to rule on the appeal this week. While Bonjean has successfully gained an appeal in a similar case with Bill Cosby, the odds of the 57-year-old singer’s convictions being overturned are highly unlikely.
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Photo: E. JASON WAMBSGANS / Getty
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Source: Variety / Getty
Ye aka Kanye West compared himself to disgraced singer R. Kelly, Diddy, Bill Cosby and Jesus Christ in a new song at his Chicago show.
According to XXL, on Thursday (Feb. 8), Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign took the stage at the United Center in Chicago for a preview listening experience for their album, Vultures Volume 1. One of the songs from the anticipated release, “Carnival,” featured what potentially could be one of the rapper’s most eyebrow-raising verses ever.
“This that Game of Thrones, Yeezy not the clones,” Ye raps. “Elon, where my rocket ship, it’s time to go home/They served us the corn since the day we was born/Anybody pissed off, gotta make them drink the urine/Now, I’m Ye Kelly, b—h/Now I’m Bill Cosby, b—h/Now I’m Puff Daddy rich.”
His verse on the song (which features Playboy Carti and Rich the Kid) continued:
“That’s ‘Me Too’ me rich/First she say she suck my d—k/Then, she say she ain’t suck my d—k/She ’gon take it up the a— like a ventriloquist/I mean, since Taylor Swift, since I had the Rollie on the wrist/I’m the new Jesus, b—h, I turn water into Cris’/This for what they did to Chris/They can’t do s—t with this,” Ye raps.
Ye performed this track and others dressed up in what’s now his customary all-black attire, wearing a white hockey mask similar to the one worn by Friday the 13th villain Jason Voorhees. It fit the scene as fans had entered the United Center while smoke machines began to emanate fog. The show also featured surprise appearances by his daughter, North West, and Bump J along with YG.
The listening event comes after Kanye West stated in an Instagram video that he was having trouble booking venues, alluding to his past controversial behavior and antisemitism. The album also has not dropped as expected. However, Ye is now set to hold another listening event, this time at the UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, Friday (Feb. 9). The venue announced a ticket pre-sale on the night of the United Center show with tickets beginning at $182 per seat. The album, which was expected to have been released at midnight on Friday, has not yet materialized.
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R. Kelly is pushing back against a $10.5 million lawsuit settlement against him, claiming that he could not address the lawsuit because he can’t read, among other reasons.
On Tuesday (January 16), legal documents were disclosed revealing R&B artist R. Kelly is challenging a $10.5 million settlement from a lawsuit that he lost in August 2023. Besides stating that he was unaware of it due to the number of lawsuits filed against him, Kelly claims he relies on his legal team to explain the lawsuits against him. “I rely on my lawyers to explain things to me because I cannot read or understand words beyond that of a grade-schooler,” Kelly said in the documents.
R. Kelly also reportedly argues in the documents that the co-defendant and former manager Donnell Russell should be solely responsible for paying the $10.5 million judgment that the court rendered. The lawsuit was filed by six women who claimed that in 2018, Kelly and Russell attempted to stop a screening of the documentary series Surviving R. Kelly in New York City, with Russell being accused of calling in a mass shooting threat to the movie theater where the screening was to take place. Kelly denied his involvement, saying that Russell wasn’t even his manager. “He did that for his own reasons,” the documents read.
Each woman in the lawsuit is slated to receive between $1.1 and $2.5 million from the judgment. These damages would be added to payments that the disgraced singer was ordered to pay out by U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly from his royalties. R. Kelly is currently in prison in North Carolina and is expected to serve out sentences totaling up to thirty years after being convicted of sex trafficking and racketeering. Russell was sentenced to one year in prison after being convicted of violent intimidation.
A statement from Kelly’s lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, offered some clarification to the reports. “We are absolutely pushing back on the $10.5 million default judgment that was entered against him without notice and without a sound legal justification,” the statement began. “It would be simplistic and silly to write that the basis for our motion to vacate the windfall judgment relates solely to his illiteracy (although he is in fact functionally illiterate per formalized testing). The more significant problem is that there was no legal basis to enter the default judgment on the merits.”
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Source: Handout / Getty
R. Kelly has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government and prison officials for allegedly leaking his prison information before his Chicago-area trial to Tasha K.
On Monday (Nov. 13), R. Kelly filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court of Northern Illinois against the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, alleging that they leaked personal details about him before his infamous trial months ago. The lawsuit is also filed against the federal government as well as Latasha Kebe, better known as celebrity blogger Tasha K. Kelly is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for enticing a minor into sexual activity and producing child pornography. He’s also been convicted in a separate case in New York for sex trafficking and racketeering.
In the documents of the lawsuit, R. Kelly alleges that “at least 60 BOP officers made unauthorized access to plaintiff’s sensitive, confidential, and private information maintained by the BOP.” The controversial singer specifically cited three of the unnamed prison officials who he claimed looked at his visitor logs and private calls and then struck a deal with Tasha K – presumably for money – to leak that information to her so that she could share it with her vast audience in her role as a celebrity blogger.
“He had every right to be able to be confident, to think the BOP would protect his information and not exploit, but unfortunately, certain BOP officers did just that,” said Jennifer Bonjean, R. Kelly’s attorney to ABC7 Chicago. “He does not feel comfortable to this day talking to anyone, even his own lawyers, because of the impact of this event.” One of the singer’s sisters, Lisa Kelly, expressed her dismay over the situation. “You’re listening to personal phone calls. You’re listening to recordings. That’s not right. That’s not right. That doesn’t sit well with me at all,” she said.
Tasha K apparently felt something was up, as she addressed the lawsuit on social media months before it was filed in January. It’s notable that she went to those lengths as she is currently under duress after losing a major lawsuit brought against her by Cardi B for defamation of character. The blogger had vowed to go to the Supreme Court after the verdict, which found her liable for $4 million in damages.
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Source: Amy Sussman / Getty
A few of R. Kelly’s victims who participated in the Surviving R. Kelly docuseries were subjected to all kinds of threats for exposing the self-proclaimed “R&B thug” and now a judge has decided to award them some monetary compensation for their troubles.
According to documents obtained by TMZ, six of the “I Wish” singer’s victims will be awarded a total of $10.5 million dollars straight from the pockets of R. Kelly and his manager, Donnell Russell, after successfully suing them for shutting down the 2018 screening of Surviving R. Kelly in New York City.
TMZ reports:
They alleged the defendants waged a campaign, starting back in May 2018, to intimidate the women, A&E/Lifetime and the producers to stop screening the docuseries. When those efforts, including legal threats, failed … they claimed Kelly’s camp called producers on the night of the NYC screening and said someone was “going to shoot up the place.”
The fake mass shooting threat worked, as the event was shut down — and according to the victims, it all opened up past trauma and resulted in them suffering PTSD and panic attacks.
Apparently, R. Kelly and his peoples didn’t want the public to hear his victims’ side of their story and will now have to pay dearly for it. Each of the six women will be compensated with a little more than $1 million each for their pain and suffering, but whether or not they’ll ever see a penny of that money is anyone’s guess as Kelly isn’t exactly rolling in it like he was in his very abundant heyday.
Though his music is still generating $500,000 in royalties from Universal Music Group to this day, who knows how long it will take for each woman to get their proper compensation.
What do y’all think of the judge’s decision? Too much or too little? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Source: Pool / Getty / R. Kelly
If R. Kelly lives to see the light of day again, his bank account will be severely light on funds, deservingly so because the Pied Piper of R&Pee has to pay back the victims of his crimes.
Spotted on TMZ Hip Hop, convicted rapist R. Kelly is not done paying back his victims. According to the celebrity gossip site, the “Only The Loot Can Make Me Happy” singer still owes over half a million bucks, and a judge is now hitting whatever’s left of his music royalties.
Per TMZ Hip Hop:
R. Kelly is still on the hook for more than half a million bucks in restitution to his victims — but they’ll be getting a big check soon thanks to his old hits.
According to docs, obtained by TMZ Hip Hop, a judge signed an order garnishing the embattled singer’s royalties … as it was discovered Universal Music Group is holding a bunch of his royalties.
So, the company will now cut a check to cover Kelly’s restitution bill.
UMG’s Remaining R.Kelly Royalties Will Cover The Balance
TMZ Hip Hop also reports that Kelly is on the hook for $506,950.26, and it just so happens that UMG has $567,444.19, which can definitely settle his remaining debts.That remaining cash could directly result from the people who can’t seem to let go of “Step in The Name of Love” and R. Kelly’s other songs and continue to stream them in protest of his conviction and pure heada**ery.
Before his trial, R. Kelly’s latest album “leaked” but was swiftly removed off streaming platforms, and both RCA and Sony dropped the disgraced singer/songwriter.
R. Kelly was sentenced to 20 years in prison by a Chicago judge on top of the 30 years he was slapped with in his New York Case on top of the additional year he will serve in jail.
It’s a safe bet the streets will never hear or see Robert Kelly again.
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Photo: Pool / Getty
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R. Kelly was once considered one of the greatest R&B singers and songwriters of his generation until scandals upended his massive stardom and all but shattered his integrity. On Twitter, an intense debate regarding separating the artist from the music kicked off over the weekend and Gunna found himself in the middle of this ongoing conversation.
R. Kelly, 56, is currently serving time for sex crimes and racketeering charges that took place in his native Chicago and in New York. The beleaguered artist still enjoys a high amount of support from fans who believe the charges levied against Kelly were exaggerated or false. Still, Kelly’s music is largely missing from the modern landscape in the wake of all his legal troubles as it should be.
A Twitter user posed an interesting thought over the weekend when @amarihanifahh asked, “So y’all can separate the music from the artist with R. Kelly but not Gunna?”
The tweet was eventually grabbed by another Twitter account and shared, which got R. Kelly trending on Twitter for the past day and a half.
The question was probably asked because another Twitter account shared the reactions of Atlanta clubgoers after the DJ inside the establishment played a song from Gunna and the entire club stopped dancing. Gunna, as most might know, has earned the unsavory reputation of being a snitch amid the ongoing YSL RICO case with his former compatriot Young Thug and others connected to the matter.
Because some people lack context clues, most missed @amarihanifahh’s point in that it’s something of a contradiction that R. Kelly fans will still play his music despite years of accounts and court evidence backing why they shouldn’t instead of Gunna, who was seemingly let go on a legal technicality and testimony that can’t be used against the alleged YSL gang members on trial. Further, there is a lot of civilian opinion on street business that at least 90 percent of Twitter doesn’t know anything about.
Check out some of the tweets below.
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Photo: Getty
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R. Kelly’s legal dilemmas are getting bigger by the week. A judge has added another year to his sentence regarding his Chicago case.
As spotted on Page Six the disgraced singer got some bittersweet news this week. On Thursday (Feb. 23), U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber sentenced R. Kelly to 20 years for three counts of producing child pornography and three counts of enticing a minor into criminal sexual activity.
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The terms are that the sentence will run concurrently with the 30 years he is serving now for his New York state charges. In essence, he will have to serve another year after his New York bid is up.
“No matter what I do, Mr. Kelly isn’t going out the door after today,” Leinenweber said. “He’s not going out the door in the next 10 years. He’s not going out the door in the next 20 years.” The Chicago Sun-Times reports Kelly sat there “stone face” as the magistrate read the sentencing. R. Kelly’s lawyer plans to appeal the decision.
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Photo: Cook County Department of Corrections
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Source: Cook County Department of Corrections / Cook County Department of Corrections
R. Kelly might be looking at more time than he expected. Federal prosecutors are asking that he get 25 more years behind bars.
As spotted on The Grio the disgraced singer might be looking at football numbers. The Associated Press reports that on Thursday, February 16 prosecutors asked the presiding judge to consider adding more time to the “I Believe I Can Fly” performer’s prison sentence for his crimes in Chicago. They ask that he serve the 25 after he finishes his original sentence in New York. The paperwork referred to him as “sadistic” and as “a serial sexual predator” who “poses a serious danger to society.” The filing, which was 37 pages, says “the only way to ensure Kelly does not reoffend is to impose a sentence that will keep him in prison for the rest of his life”.
Kelly’s lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, wrote in a filing that his current 30 year sentence does not leave with much room for a life. “Kelly would have to defy all statistical odds to make it out of prison alive” pointing to data that the average life expectancy for inmates is 64. She recommends a lesser sentence of 10 years and that it should run concurrent.
In 2022 R. Kelly was found guilty on federal charges of producing child pornography and enticing girls for sex. U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber will decide his fate for his Chicago charges. Last month Cook County Attorney Kim Foxx announced that the state of Illinois will no longer be pursuing the indictments filed back in 2019.
Photo: Cook County Department of Corrections
A Chicago federal judge has rejected R. Kelly’s bid to overturn his conviction last year on child pornography charges, clearing the way for sentencing which is scheduled for next week.
Denying motions filed by Kelly’s lawyers seeking either a new trial or an outright acquittal, Judge Harry D. Leinenweber ruled Thursday (Feb. 16) that federal prosecutors provided jurors with “enough evidence to sustain a guilty verdict on all six counts Kelly was convicted of.”
Among other arguments, Kelly’s lawyers had argued that one of his victims (known as “Jane”) gave false testimony on the witness stand about whether she planned to seek monetary restitution from Kelly if he was ultimately convicted. They said the incident suggested Jane had “motivation to share her story in ways that were not entirely honest.”
But Judge Leinenweber saw things differently: “Simply because Jane and her attorney considered the possibility of restitution, does not mean she lied during her testimony,” the judge wrote.
Following a four-week trial in Chicago federal court, Kelly was found guilty in September on three counts of child pornography and three counts of enticing a minor. He was acquitted of other charges that accused him of fixing a 2008 state-court trial over the same child pornography accusations.
That conviction came after a federal judge in New York previously sentenced Kelly to 30 years in prison in June on separate racketeering and sex trafficking convictions.
Kelly is set for sentencing on Feb. 23 on the Chicago charges. He faces as many as 90 additional years in prison on those convictions.
In seeking to overturn the conviction, Kelly’s lawyers made a number of arguments, including that the government had failed to show conclusively that the singer “enticed” Jane into making child pornography. But Judge Leinenweber ruled instead that there was “ample” evidence to support the charge.
“Jane testified about how Kelly gradually persuaded her into sexual activity with him,” the judge wrote. “Jane described how Kelly induced her into making Videos One through Three and that Kelly positioned the camera and told Jane exactly what to do and say while having sex with him.”
Thursday’s ruling is not the final decision on Kelly’s conviction. His attorneys can still challenge the outcome to a federal appeals court and eventually to the U.S. Supreme Court, though they face long odds in overturning a jury’s verdict.
Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, did not immediately return a request for comment on Thursday’s order.
Read the judge’s entire ruling here: