Prosecutors Say 'Evidence Was Overwhelming' In R. Kelly Racketeering Conviction
Federal prosecutors in New York filed documents Monday (March 21) to defend the legal tactics they used to successfully convict R. Kelly last year. The filing offers a glimpse into the possible arguments the government will make in response to Kelly’s expected appeal of his conviction.
The Chicago Tribune reports that the prosecutors’ 150-page legal briefs argue that the embattled R&B singer was properly charged with racketeering for his sexual offenses, saying there was overwhelming evidence for a conviction. The briefs also reject the defense team’s claim that some jurors were biased.
This filing was a response to motions from Kelly’s lawyer that accused the prosecutors of misusing the federal racketeering law, which is typically used to prosecute organized crime bosses. The motions also claim that Kelly’s trial attorney incompetently failed to challenge certain jurors who may have made up their minds that Kelly was guilty before hearing all the evidence.
Under the U.S. code, racketeering refers to any act or threat including bribery, extortion, or dealing in obscene material through coordinated illegal means. According to The New York Times, prosecutors argued that Kelly and his "inner circle" recruited girls and young women for sexual exploitation, and to produce pornography, for more than two decades and in multiple states.
In these latest legal briefs, the prosecutor defended using the racketeering law despite its association with gangsters, saying that they proved all the elements to win a conviction.
“The evidence against the defendant on all charges was overwhelming and the defendant has presented no evidence to demonstrate that the jury’s verdict was based on anything other than the evidence presented at trial,” the Tribune quoted the prosecutors’ briefs.
According to the defense, now led by attorney Jennifer Bonjean who also represented Bill Cosby in his successful sexual assault appeal hearing, Kelly’s trial lawyers failed to challenge several jurors who said they watched Surviving R. Kelly, the 2019 docuseries that portrays him as a serial predator.
Bonjean wrote in her motion that none of those jurors should have been selected. However, the prosecutors countered in their response that they questioned those jurors about whether they could render a fair verdict based on the evidence presented.
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According to the Tribune, the trial judge is unlikely to side with the defense and give Kelly a new trial. Judges on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals are expected to consider Bonjean’s arguments.
Meanwhile, the singer awaits sentencing in New York on May 4. He faces between 10 years to life behind bars.
Kelly has additional legal troubles ahead. In Chicago, he will stand trial on child pornography and obstruction of justice charges. He was also indicted of sexual abuse in state court in Chicago and a child prostitution charge in Minnesota.
