Prosecutor Drops R. Kelly Sex-Abuse Charges In Chicago.
Kim Foxx, Cook County State’s Attorney, announced on Monday that she is dismissing the sexual abuse charges against R&B singer R. Kelly.
This comes ahead of a hearing related to the state charges which accused Kelly of sexually abusing four people, three of whom were minors.
Foxx stated that the decision may be disappointing to the accusers, however, she believes justice has been served due to Kelly’s federal convictions in two courts, which could result in him being in prison for the rest of his life.
Since Kelly was indicted in Cook County in 2019, he has faced federal convictions in both New York and Chicago for crimes such as child pornography, enticement, racketeering, and sex trafficking related to allegations of victimizing women and girls. He is currently serving a 30-year prison sentence in New York and awaits sentencing in Chicago on February 23rd. Despite the appeal, Kelly’s New York sentence alone means that he won’t be eligible for release until he is 80 years old.
Foxx reached out to Kelly’s lawyer two weeks ago to indicate that the charges might be dropped, and also spoke to the women whose allegations were at the heart of the case. She expressed praise for their courage in coming forward. Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, stated that she was pleased with the decision to drop charges, as Kelly only has one life to give.
Lanita Carter, who accused Kelly of sexual assault in 2003, expressed her disappointment with the news, stating that all hope for justice for her case has now gone.
While Foxx stated that a monetary cost-benefit analysis was not performed, she did indicate that resources used for the trial could instead be used for advocacy for other survivors of sexual abuse. There is another sexual misconduct case pending in Hennepin County, Minnesota, where Kelly faces solicitation charges, but it has been on hold while the federal cases have played out. Prosecutors in Minnesota have not yet indicated their intentions regarding taking Kelly to trial.
R. Kelly, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, rose to fame with his hit song “I Believe I Can Fly” and sex-infused songs such as “Bump n’ Grind.” Despite allegations of abuse of young girls circulating publicly since the 1990s, he continued to sell millions of albums. It wasn’t until the release of the Lifetime docuseries “Surviving R. Kelly” in early 2019 and the #MeToo movement that widespread outrage over Kelly’s sexual misconduct emerged.
Foxx’s office had alleged that Kelly repeatedly sought out girls for sex, including a 16-year-old he met at her birthday party and another who met him while he was on trial in 2008. During the federal trial in New York in 2021, prosecutors argued that Kelly used his entourage of managers and aides to meet girls and keep them obedient, which constituted a criminal enterprise.
A Chicago prosecutor is dropping the state sex-abuse charges against singer R. Kelly, following federal convictions in two courts that ensure he will be locked up for decades. https://t.co/N6nmv16trL
— The Associated Press (@AP) January 30, 2023
In the federal trial in Chicago in 2021, Kelly was portrayed as a master manipulator who used his fame and wealth to sexually abuse and then discard young and star-struck fans. Despite convictions on six of the 13 counts, the government lost the main count, which accused Kelly and his former business manager of rigging his 2008 child pornography trial.
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