R. Kelly seeks acquittal or new trial in racketeering and sex trafficking case
nme.comR. Kelly has filed a motion to be acquitted on – or at least be granted a new trial for – his September 2021 conviction for racketeering, sexual exploitation of a child and kidnapping.According to documents sighted by Rolling Stone, Kelly and his lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, allege that the R&B singer (real name Robert Sylvester Kelly) was denied his Sixth Amendment rights (which state that all criminal defendants are entitled to “a speedy and public trial” by “an impartial jury”).It’s claimed that Kelly was denied his right to effective assistance of counsel in examining potential jurors, and that his assigned counsel neglected to challenge unqualified jurors.
It’s also alleged that some of the jurors were aware of prior accusations made against Kelly (specifically those pertaining to his alleged sexual assault of minors) and had viewed the 2019 docuseries Surviving R.
Kelly, meaning the jury “was neither fair nor impartial”.According to Rolling Stone, the documents also claim that Kelly’s former counsel was biased, as it’s alleged that “one of his trial attorneys was simultaneously representing the defendant of a prosecutor’s star witness”, referred to as Jane.
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