Ain’t nothin’ wrong with a little bump ‘n grind — in the hoosegow!
R&B sensation R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years behind bars today for racketeering and sex trafficking. Many of his star-struck victims were minors.
Kelly’s lawyers asked for a 10-year stint in prison. They spoke of his growing up poor and being a victim of sexual assault himself. The judge wasn’t having it.
“Although sex was certainly a weapon that you used, this is not a case about sex. It’s a case about violence, cruelty, and control,” U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly snapped at Kelly before handing him a 30-year sentence in prison. For Kelly, 55, this could mean a life sentence.
US singer R. Kelly sentenced to 30 years in jail for running a scheme to sexually abuse girls and women https://t.co/5Prmh3EE8y
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) June 29, 2022
Allegations of sexual antics and improprieties began to circulate back in the 1990s when rumors emerged of Kelly’s penchant for urinating on young girls. The rumors meant little to his fans, who continued to buy millions of his albums.
In 1994, Kelly allegedly impregnated then-15-year-old singer Aaliyah and married her after getting a bogus driver’s license stating her age as 18. He was 27 at the time, although both Kelly and the late singer Aaliyah denied that the marriage took place. Kelly beat a 2008 child pornography rap involving a young girl having sex with him on a videotape.
Related: R. Kelly Found Guilty on All Charges in Sex Trafficking Trial, Faces Life in Prison
Other women testified that Kelly had “rules” which, if broken, would result in humiliating punishments involving brutal spankings and, in at least one case, forcing a woman to smear feces on her own face. Another woman testified that Kelly never told her he had herpes yet passed it on to her.
“You made me do things that broke my spirit. I literally wished I would die because of how low you made me feel,” one anonymous victim bellowed in court at the sentencing. “Do you remember that?”
Other women spoke of being humiliated and degraded.
Kelly’s lawyers plan to appeal.
Further charges await Kelly in Chicago, involving photos of him having sex with a minor.
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