Thursday, 18 August 2022
Meet the JournalistsPremiumAucklandWellingtonCanterbury/South Island
CrimePoliticsHealthEducationEnvironment and ClimateNZ Herald FocusData journalismKāhu, Māori ContentPropertyWeather
Small BusinessOpinionPersonal FinanceEconomyBusiness TravelCapital Markets
Politics
Premium SportRugbyCommonwealth GamesCricketRacingNetballBoxingLeagueFootballSuper RugbyAthleticsBasketballMotorsportTennisCyclingGolfAmerican SportsHockeyUFC
NZH Local FocusThe Northern AdvocateThe Northland AgeThe AucklanderWaikato HeraldBay of Plenty TimesHawke's Bay TodayRotorua Daily PostWhanganui ChronicleStratford PressManawatu GuardianKapiti NewsHorowhenua ChronicleTe Awamutu Courier
Covid-19
Te Rito
Te Rito
OneRoof PropertyCommercial Property
Open JusticeVideoPodcastsTechnologyWorldOpinion
SpyTVMoviesBooksMusicCultureSideswipeCompetitions
Fashion & BeautyFood & DrinkRoyalsRelationshipsWellbeingPets & AnimalsVivaCanvasEat WellCompetitionsRestaurants & Menus
New Zealand TravelAustralia TravelInternational Travel
Our Green FutureRuralOneRoof Property
Career AdviceCorporate News
Driven MotoringPhotos
SudokuCodecrackerCrosswordsWordsearchDaily quizzes
Classifieds
KaitaiaWhangareiDargavilleAucklandThamesTaurangaHamiltonWhakataneRotoruaTokoroaTe KuitiTaumarunuiTaupoGisborneNew PlymouthNapierHastingsDannevirkeWhanganuiPalmerston NorthLevinParaparaumuMastertonWellingtonMotuekaNelsonBlenheimWestportReeftonKaikouraGreymouthHokitikaChristchurchAshburtonTimaruWanakaOamaruQueenstownDunedinGoreInvercargill
NZ HeraldThe Northern AdvocateThe Northland AgeThe AucklanderWaikato HeraldBay Of Plenty TimesRotorua Daily PostHawke's Bay TodayWhanganui ChronicleThe Stratford PressManawatu GuardianKapiti NewsHorowhenua ChronicleTe Awamutu CourierVivaEat WellOneRoofDriven MotoringThe CountryPhoto SalesNZ Herald InsightsWatchMeGrabOneiHeart RadioRestaurant Hub

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.
Entertainment

R Kelly jailed for 30 years: Victims speak out about abuse from R&B singer

29 Jun, 2022 08:00 PM5 minutes to read
The singer, 55, is facing a heavy jail term after being convicted in federal court last year on sex trafficking and racketeering charges. VIdeo / AP

The singer, 55, is facing a heavy jail term after being convicted in federal court last year on sex trafficking and racketeering charges. VIdeo / AP

AP
By Tom Hays and Bobby Caina Calvan

R Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison Wednesday (Thursday NZ time) for using his fame to subject young fans — some just children — to systematic sexual abuse.

Through tears and anger, several of Kelly's accusers told a court, and him, that he had preyed on them and misled his fans.

"You made me do things that broke my spirit. I literally wished I would die because of how low you made me feel," said one unnamed survivor, directly addressing a Kelly who kept his hands folded and his eyes downcast.

"Do you remember that?" she added.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

Read More

  • R Kelly sex trafficking trial: Prosecutors request ...
  • Ex-tour manager testifies against R. Kelly about Aaliyah ...
  • R&B superstar R. Kelly convicted in sex trafficking ...
  • R Kelly found guilty: A timeline of his life, from ...

Kelly, 55, didn't speak at his sentencing, where he also was ordered to pay a US$100,000 fine. The Grammy-winning, multiplatinum-selling singer and songwriter was convicted last year of racketeering and sex trafficking at a trial that gave voice to accusers who had previously wondered if their stories were being ignored because they were black women.

"Although sex was certainly a weapon that you used, this is not a case about sex. It's a case about violence, cruelty and control," US District Judge Ann Donnelly told him.

The sentence caps a slow-motion fall for Kelly, who was adored by legions of fans and sold millions of albums even after allegations about his abuse of young girls began circulating publicly in the 1990s.

Widespread outrage over Kelly's sexual misconduct didn't come until the #MeToo reckoning, reaching a crescendo after the release of the docuseries Surviving R Kelly.

In this courtroom sketch, Kitti Jones speaks during R Kelly's sentencing in court. Photo / AP
In this courtroom sketch, Kitti Jones speaks during R Kelly's sentencing in court. Photo / AP

Kelly's lawyers had argued he should get no more than 10 years in prison because he had a traumatic childhood "involving severe, prolonged childhood sexual abuse, poverty, and violence".

As an adult with "literacy deficiencies," the star was "repeatedly defrauded and financially abused, often by the people he paid to protect him," his lawyers said.

Related articles

Entertainment

'God save me': Travis Barker rushed to hospital with mystery illness

29 Jun 12:22 AM
Entertainment

Elvis or Top Gun? The film that's officially won the box office

28 Jun 10:37 PM
Entertainment

US talk show host wants to run for president

28 Jun 10:09 PM
Entertainment

Piers Morgan forced to explain photos with now-convicted sex offenders

28 Jun 09:58 PM

The hitmaker is known for work including the 1996 hit I Believe I Can Fly and the cult classic Trapped in the Closet, a multi-part tale of sexual betrayal and intrigue.

Allegations that Kelly abused young girls began circulating publicly in the 1990s. He was sued in 1997 by a woman who alleged sexual battery and sexual harassment while she was a minor, and he later faced criminal child pornography charges related to a different girl in Chicago. A jury there acquitted him in 2008, and he settled the lawsuit.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

All the while, Kelly continued to sell millions of albums.

R Kelly and his attorney Jennifer Bonjean in a courtroom sketch. Photo / AP
R Kelly and his attorney Jennifer Bonjean in a courtroom sketch. Photo / AP

The Brooklyn federal court jury convicted him after hearing that he used his entourage of managers and aides to meet girls and keep them obedient, an operation that prosecutors said amounted to a criminal enterprise.

Kelly, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, used his "fame, money and popularity" to systematically "prey upon children and young women for his own sexual gratification," prosecutors wrote in a court filing earlier this month.

Several accusers testified that Kelly subjected them to perverse and sadistic whims when they were underage.

The accusers alleged they were ordered to sign nondisclosure forms and were subjected to threats and punishments such as violent spankings if they broke what one referred to as "Rob's rules".

Some said they believed the videotapes he shot of them having sex would be used against them if they exposed what was happening.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

According to testimony, Kelly gave several accusers herpes without disclosing he had an STD, coerced a teenage boy to join him for sex with a naked girl who emerged from underneath a boxing ring in his garage, and shot a shaming video that showed one victim smearing feces on her face as punishment for breaking his rules.

The prosecution team in the trial against R. Kelly is escorted by federal agents as they arrive at court. Photo / John Minchillo, AP
The prosecution team in the trial against R. Kelly is escorted by federal agents as they arrive at court. Photo / John Minchillo, AP

Kelly has denied any wrongdoing. He didn't testify at his trial, but his then-lawyers portrayed his accusers as girlfriends and groupies who weren't forced to do anything against their will and stayed with him because they enjoyed the perks of his lifestyle.

Evidence also was presented about a fraudulent marriage scheme hatched to protect Kelly after he feared he had impregnated R&B phenom Aaliyah in 1994 when she was just 15. Witnesses said they were married in matching jogging suits using a license falsely listing her age as 18; he was 27 at the time.

Aaliyah worked with Kelly, who wrote and produced her 1994 debut album Age Ain't Nothing But A Number. She died in a plane crash in 2001 at age 22.

An earlier defence memo suggested prosecutors' arguments for a higher sentence overreached by falsely claiming Kelly participated in the paying of a bribe to a government official in order to facilitate the illegal marriage.

The Associated Press does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted or abused, unless they come forward publicly. The women who spoke at Kelly's sentencing were identified only by first names or pseudonyms.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

Kelly has been jailed without bail since in 2019. He's still facing child pornography and obstruction of justice charges in Chicago, where a trial is scheduled to begin August 15.

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Entertainment

Premium
EntertainmentUpdated

Tim Roth on new film Punch, living in NZ and Jacinda's BBQ

17 Aug 11:00 PM
EntertainmentUpdated

A$AP Rocky pleads not guilty to firearm charges

17 Aug 10:35 PM
Entertainment

Rhythm and Vines' line-up for 20-year anniversary festival

17 Aug 10:34 PM
EntertainmentUpdated

Attorney: Don't accept portrayal of R Kelly as 'monster'

17 Aug 10:07 PM
Entertainment

Florence Pugh 'alarmed' by reaction to sheer dress

17 Aug 09:32 PM

Most Popular

Wet, warm and windy: Auckland and Northland battered by heavy rain overnight
New Zealand

Wet, warm and windy: Auckland and Northland battered by heavy rain overnight

17 Aug 09:25 PM
Nelson to New York: TV's David Lomas and an emotional reunion of long-lost father and son
Entertainment

Nelson to New York: TV's David Lomas and an emotional reunion of long-lost father and son

17 Aug 08:59 PM
Live: 'Frightening, out of control' - Nelson residents flee as river bursts; Auckland also in firing line
New Zealand

Live: 'Frightening, out of control' - Nelson residents flee as river bursts; Auckland also in firing line

17 Aug 08:33 PM

Advertisement

Advertise with NZME.
About NZMEHelp & SupportContact UsSubscribe to NZ HeraldHouse Rules
Manage Your Print SubscriptionNZ Herald E-EditionAdvertise with NZMEBook Your AdPrivacy Policy
Terms of UseCompetition Terms & ConditionsSubscriptions Terms & Conditions
© Copyright 2022 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP