Photo Courtesy of Bloomberg
Robert Sylvester Kelly, known as R. Kelly, was finally convicted in federal court on Monday, Sept. 27, of racketeering and eight counts of sex trafficking. Accusations against him go back as far as the 1990s, but he was not charged until 2019, the same year that the documentary “Surviving R. Kelly” was released. The criminal proceedings began in August and lasted about six weeks. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. The court saw testimony from more than 45 witnesses and the jury deliberated for nine hours before the verdict was announced.
A web of manipulation explains why it took so long for Kelly’s abuses to finally come to light. Prosecutors detailed how his managers, security guards and other entourage members assisted in his criminal activity.
One of the prosecutors, Elizabeth Geddes, said he “used his henchmen to lodge threats and exact revenge,” blackmailing women with embarrassing photos and secrets to keep them quiet. They touched on the “settlement factory” that kept his accusers quiet, providing evidence of Kelly’s payments to his accusers in exchange for their silence. Prosecutors even accused Kelly of paying witnesses to not cooperate with authorities during his 2008 trial on child pornography charges, in which he was eventually acquitted.
Eleven sexual abuse survivors, nine women and two men, testified during the trial. The victims said Kelly locked them in hotel rooms, controlled when they could eat and forced them to perform sexual acts. Legal documents further showed they were not allowed to use the bathroom without his permission, he decided what clothes they wore and he made them call him “Daddy.”
One of those survivors, Azriel Clary, previously defended him in a 2019 CBS News interview with Gayle King. She stated she had “learned to normalize” the abuse she endured because of his assistants, security and other women around him justifying his actions. She said Kelly was in the room during the 2019 interview and had been coaching her to answer the questions how he wanted. Gloria Allred, a lawyer representing many of the victims, said, “I’ve been practicing law for 47 years … Of all the predators I have pursued, Mr. Kelly is the worst.”
Kelly’s defense team depended greatly on victim blaming, a tactic they have used for years. NBC News reported that the legal scholars they consulted said lawyers “use language that blames accusers to reduce the perception of responsibility the defendant has in the situation.” In a July 2019 letter to a New York judge, attorney Douglas Anton referred to Kelly’s many accusers as “groupies.” During the proceedings, attorney Deveraux Cannick again claimed that Kelly’s accusers were “groupies” and that Kelly “didn’t have to recruit women” to have intercourse. His defense argued that no one was ever forced to do anything against their will and stayed because of expensive perks, claiming, “He gave them a lavish lifestyle. That’s not what a predator is supposed to do.” In the closing remarks, the defense flat-out said the testimony from several accusers was false.
In response to his verdict, many of his victims expressed relief and happiness. An anonymous woman, identified in court only as Sonja, said, “I’m ready to start living my life free from fear and to start the healing process.” Clary said she was “happy because [she] felt like this person no longer has control over [her].”
Kelly is scheduled to be sentenced on May 4, 2022. He still faces other sexual abuse charges in Minnesota and Illinois as well as child pornography and obstruction charges in Chicago. He will likely spend decades in prison.
