R. Kelly, the R&B star known for his anthem “I Believe I Can Fly,” deserves at least 25 years for sexually abusing women and girls behind bars, prosecutors said in a memo before sentencing on Wednesday.
In New York, a jury found Kelly guilty of racketeering and several other charges in a sex trafficking trial last year, which was seen as a key moment in the #MeToo movement. Prosecutors argued that the entourage of managers and assistants who helped get to know the Kelly girls, and their obedience, amounted to a criminal enterprise.
Several defendants testified in gruesome detail at the trial, arguing that Kelly was playing a perverted and sadistic whim on her juvenile victim.
Kelly used her “popularity, money and popularity” systematically to “hunt down children and young women for her own sexual gratification,” prosecutors wrote in a statement.
“He continued committing crimes and evading punishment for nearly 30 years, and now he must be held accountable,” the prosecutors wrote.
Kelly’s lawyers argue that he deserves a maximum of 17 years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines.
Among the many outrageous allegations, the jury heard testimony about a fraudulent marriage scheme created to protect Kelly after she feared she had fertilized the R&B phenomenon Alia in 1994, when she was just 15 years old. like 18; She was then 27 years old.
Alia worked with Kelly, who wrote and produced her 1994 debut album, Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number. He died in a plane crash in 2001, aged 22.
The Rivalry Memorandum offered prosecutors’ arguments for a higher sentence, exaggerated by the false allegation that Kelly was involved in bribery for the “production of an identity card” that allowed a mock marriage to proceed.
Kelly’s lawyers also said that it was wrong to argue that he should have given more time because he sexually assaulted one of his victims, whom the court referred to as “Jane”, after his priests had innocently trusted him with a career in the music.
“The record shows that Jane’s parents ordered Jane to lie to the defendant about her age and then encouraged her to lie to him,” the paper said.
Kelly, 55, will be sentenced on June 29.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
