R. Kelly was given a 30-year prison term after being found guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking.
After being convicted guilty of nine federal offenses, including sex crimes and human trafficking, in September 2021, R. Kelly was given a 30-year jail term. After hearing from a number of survivors who discussed the effects Kelly’s exploitation had on their lives, U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly imposed the sentence on Wednesday.
Kelly was criticized by one victim, a woman by the name of Angela, who added, “You utilized your celebrity and position to groom and coach juvenile boys and girls for your personal sexual enjoyment. With the addition of a new victim, you rose in evil.” We are not the prey-on-people that we formerly were.
Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, had pushed for a sentence of less than 10 years. She suggested that Kelly was more complex than a “one-dimensional villain” because of his own background of sexual assault as a young boy.
According to The New York Times, Donnelly reportedly said to Kelly, “These crimes were calculated, well planned, and routinely carried out for almost 25 years.” They learned from you that love is a form of slavery and cruelty.
Prosecutors stated in a letter requesting a sentence that “he committed these crimes using his fame and stardom as both a shield, preventing close scrutiny or condemnation of his actions, and a sword, giving him access to wealth and a network of enablers to facilitate his crimes, and an adoring fan base from which to cull his victims.”
Kelly opted not to speak in open court. Earlier this year, he had issued a statement criticizing his legal team for allegedly permitting several jurors who “may” have viewed Surviving R. Kelly. The documentary series covered Kelly’s long history of abuse accusations, including his marriage to an underage Aaliyah and the child pornography claims from 2002 that resulted in a separate trial.
Even though Kelly was given a 30-year prison term, Kelly’s legal issues are still ongoing. In addition to federal child pornography and obstruction charges in Illinois, he is still facing further state-level sexual misconduct allegations in Minnesota and Illinois.