Disgraced rapper R. Kelly is asking the United States Supreme Court to overturn his 2022 conviction of child pornography and engaging in sex with a minor.
Kelly, 57, has claimed that the charges he has been convicted for occurred decades ago and exceed the statute of limitations, according to a report published by TMZ on Tuesday, July 30. (The 2003 PROTECT Act ensures there is no statute of limitations against child sex crimes.)
The musician was initially accused of child pornography in the early 2000s but was acquitted on all charges by 2008. Years later, allegations of sexual misconduct came to light once again after the 2019 documentary Surviving R. Kelly was released. In 2021, Kelly was found guilty of sexual abuse and sex trafficking; he was subsequently sentenced to 30 years in prison.
The following year, Kelly received a guilty verdict once again, this time on three counts of child pornography and three counts of enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity. He was sentenced to 20 years in February 2023, 19 of which are set to be served at the same time as his previous sentence.
Following his 2022 guilty verdict, Kelly’s lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, stayed positive, declaring they “won more counts than we lost”and praising the jury for doing their job.
Now, when asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the conviction, Bonjean has argued that Kelly’s prior convictions don’t meet the PROTECT Act criteria because the alleged acts took place in the 1990s, according to TMZ.
Us Weekly has reached out to Kelly’s team for comment.
Kelly’s survivors have spoken out over the years, detailing the alleged abuse they faced at the hands of the musician.
“He’s not a good person,” Asante McGee, who was featured in Surviving R. Kelly, told Us in a 2019 interview. “I’ve always said that [he] is the Devil.”
Kitti Jones, another victim, told Us at the time she hoped Kelly would be found “accountable in the court of law because he has broken the law.”
She continued: “He has violated people, he has hurt people and there is stuff on tape that you can’t deny. I don’t think he’ll ever own up to what he has done, but that’ll certainly help. And get some therapy.”
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If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
If you or someone you know is experiencing child abuse, call or text Child Help Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.
If you or someone you know is a human trafficking victim, contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.
