R. Kelly's Trial Proves To Be Even More Traumatic For All Involved
R. Kelly's trial is no doubt a traumatic and horrific one. The disgraced rapper has been heading into the courtroom in his hometown of Chicago for his trail regarding child pornography and obstruction of justice charges, per Vulture. The court case in the Windy City comes as Kelly was already sentenced to 30 years in prison following a separate trial in New York City that ended a year earlier in September 2021, where he was found guilty of sex trafficking as well as federal racketeering, per NBC News.
As for his latest trial, Kelly has had some shocking allegations made against him, with a prosecutor even proclaiming in the courtroom on September 12, per ABC News, "Robert Kelly abused many girls over many years. He committed horrible crimes against children... All these years later, the hidden side of Robert Kelly has come out." As for what Kelly's team have said during the hearing, Kelly's lead attorney asked for them to be a mistrial, claiming due to intense media attention surrounding the allegations, "The presumption of innocence has been abolished for him."
Of course, this disturbing case was always going to be harrowing for all those involved and anyone who can sadly relate to the case, but now it's taken an even more dramatic turn.
A juror left the R. Kelly case after a panic attack
R. Kelly's Chicago trial saw a scary moment go down in the courtroom on September 12 after a juror began to experience a panic attack and had to leave the room. It reportedly went down after the prosecution gave closing arguments, with TMZ claiming that the judge then excused the sufferer. Their name has not been released to the public, though it's reported the panic attack sufferer was a white woman who has now been replaced on the case by a white male. Just like the original juror, the new addition to the juror has reportedly not seen the infamous "Surviving R. Kelly" documentary series in which several of his alleged victims spoke out against him.
The sudden juror change happened just one day before Kelly's lead attorney will give his team's closing arguments in the courtroom, per NPR, with jurors set to start deliberating to decide Kelly's fate shortly after that.
In addition to the New York and Chicago trials, Kelly is also facing a charge in Minnesota, per Los Angeles Times. That case sees Kelly accused of solicitation after he allegedly propositioned a 17-year-old girl in 2001 by purportedly asking her to take off her clothes for him in exchange for $200. In 2019, Kelly did not show up for his first court appearance.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).