A verdict has been reached in the federal trial of R. Kelly, who faced 13 charges, including child pornography. Of the charges, Kelly was found guilty of three counts of child pornography, and three counts of enticing minors for sex, while being acquitted on seven others.
Each of the child pornography charges carries a minimum of 10 years in prison.
While Kelly was found guilty, his two alleged co-conspirators, Derrell McDavid and Milton “June” Brown, were both acquitted on all charges. They had been accused of fixing Kelly’s 2008 trial for state child porn charges by allegedly intimidating and paying off witnesses.
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It took the jury a total of 11 hours of deliberation before reaching a verdict. They began meeting on Tuesday afternoon and came to a decision on Wednesday.
“What R. Kelly wanted was to have sex with young girls,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeannice Appenteng said in the prosecution’s closing arguments, earlier this week. “And what the people around him wanted… they wanted to help their boss, including helping him get away with it.”
Kelly’s defense attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, had argued on Tuesday: “This man did some beautiful things with his music. And he should not be stripped of every bit of humanity. I ask more importantly and to remember each count counts and take the time you need…Mr. Kelly deserves it no matter what you think of him.”
Wednesday marks the second time that Kelly has been convicted in the past year, after being sentenced to 30 years in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly in New York, back in June.
[Via]