Sexual abuse
R. Kelly in 2019. — © Matt Marton
The twenty-year prison sentence for former American R&B singer R. Kelly for images of child abuse and extortion is justified. A court in Chicago ruled this after an appeal by the singer.
R. Kelly, known for the hits ‘I believe I can fly’ and ‘If I can turn back the hands of time’, was found guilty in 2021 of leading an organization with the aim of abusing women and girls. The singer was sentenced to thirty years in prison. He was later sentenced to another twenty years in prison in Chicago. The American appealed against both rulings.
Kelly’s lawyers, who has always denied the allegations, argued that the 20-year prison sentence was not valid. But the jury labeled the appeal as an attempt by Kelly to avoid charges entirely and rejected it. The American channel ABC News reported about this.
Don’t pass by
But Kelly doesn’t give up. His lawyer Jennifer Bonjean stated that they want to ask the US Supreme Court to review the ruling. “We are disappointed in the ruling, but our fight is far from over.”
Prosecutors in Kelly’s hometown of Chicago previously demanded a five-year longer sentence than the 20-year prison sentence. Moreover, they wanted the sentence to start after Kelly’s previous sentence of thirty years. That request was rejected. The singer may serve both sentences simultaneously.
