Jury selection in the federal trial of R. Kelly — on charges that he rigged his 2008 state child pornography trial — began Monday, with the judge and attorneys quickly focusing on whether prospective jurors had seen the documentary of 2019 regarding sexual assault allegations against the R&B singer.
After denying a request by Kelly’s attorney to automatically exclude any juror who watched the six-part documentary series Surviving R. Kelly, U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber questioned potential jurors about how much they had watched, what they could remember about it and whether they could be impartial if elected.
Jurors were asked whether they had seen the documentary in a questionnaire they had already completed. In one case, a woman who left her answer blank admitted to watching several episodes. However, she was not immediately excused from the service.
Overall, the judge dismissed at least half of the people he questioned Monday. More often they were excluded after admitting that they could not promise to be fair. One woman who was excused explained that she wasn’t sure because she works in education with children.
Jury selection was expected to continue Tuesday.
The trial centers on whether Kelly threatened and paid off a girl he allegedly videotaped having sex with when he was in his mid-30s and she was no older than 14. they had no choice because the girl did not testify. The woman, now 30 and referred to in documents only as “Juvenile 1,” will be the government’s star witness in the upcoming federal trial, which is expected to last four weeks.
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Disgraced R&B star R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison on racketeering and sex trafficking charges. Several of his victims described their abuse at the hearing and the lasting effect on their lives.
Kelly, 55, enters this trial in federal court in Chicago after he was already sentenced by a federal judge in New York to 30 years in prison for a 2021 sentence on charges that he used his fame to sexually abuse other young people fans.
Dressed in a light gray suit and tie, Kelly waved quickly to potential jurors as his attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, introduced him. Kelly wore a mask like everyone else in court due to coronavirus precautions.
Kelly, who rose from poverty on Chicago’s South Side to become a star singer, songwriter and record producer, faces multiple charges at trial. They include four counts of luring minors for sex – one each for four other accusers. They are also scheduled to testify.
The Chicago sentences could add decades to Kelly’s New York sentence, which he is appealing. With the New York sentence alone, Kelly will be about 80 before he’s eligible for parole.
Partners also on trial
Two of Kelly’s associates, Derrell McDavid and Milton Brown, are co-defendants in the Chicago trial.
McDavid is accused of helping Kelly arrange the 2008 trial, while Brown is accused of obtaining child pornography. Like Kelly, they also denied any wrongdoing.
Two state cases are also still pending. One is a multiple sexual assault lawsuit out of Cook County Circuit Court in Chicago. The other is a fundraising lawsuit in Minnesota. No trial dates have been set for either.
Minor 1 is expected to testify that she was videotaped having sex with Kelly. The tape was the basis of the month-long trial in 2008 and was played for jurors almost every day.
Little 1 first met Kelly in the late 1990s when she was in junior high school. She had headed to Kelly’s recording studio in Chicago with her aunt, a professional singer who worked with Kelly. Soon after, Minor 1 told her parents that Kelly was going to be her godfather.
Prosecutors say Kelly later threatened and tried to pay off Little 1 and her parents not to testify at trial in 2008. Neither did.
Double jeopardy rules prohibit prosecuting someone for the same crimes for which they were previously acquitted.
That doesn’t apply to the federal trial in Chicago, as prosecutors allege different offenses related to Minor 1, including obstruction of justice.
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