R&B artist R. Kelly was sentenced to 20 years in prison in a Chicago federal courtroom on Thursday. Following his conviction on counts of child pornography and enticing of a minor. This is his second extensive sentencing within the last year.
56 years old Kelly, was found guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking in 2021 and he is currently serving a 30-year jail sentence.
The History of R. Kelly’s crimes and allegations
R. Kelly is a Grammy-winning R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer who has been accused of various crimes and allegations throughout his career. Here is a timeline of some of the key events:
1994 – R. Kelly marries Aaliyah, who was 15 years old at the time. The marriage was later annulled.
2000 – A video tape surfaced that allegedly showed R. Kelly engaging in sexual acts with an underage girl. He was indicted on 21 counts of child pornography.
2002 – R. Kelly was arrested on the child pornography charges. He pleaded not guilty and was released on bail.
2003 – R. Kelly was indicted on more child pornography charges. He was accused of videotaping himself having sex with a girl who was as young as 13 years old.
2004 – R. Kelly’s child pornography trial began. The case was delayed multiple times and eventually ended in a mistrial.
2005 – R. Kelly was sued by a woman who claimed he had a sexual relationship with her when she was underage.
2008 – R. Kelly was acquitted of all charges in his child pornography trial.
2017 – Buzzfeed published an article in which parents accused R. Kelly of holding their daughters in a “cult” and controlling their every move.
2018 – The #MuteRKelly movement gained momentum, with activists calling for R. Kelly to be held accountable for his alleged crimes.
2019 – The documentary series “Surviving R. Kelly” aired on Lifetime, which featured interviews with women who claimed they had been abused by R. Kelly. The series sparked renewed outrage and scrutiny of the singer.
2019 – R. Kelly was indicted on 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse involving four alleged victims, including three who were underage at the time of the alleged abuse.
2020 – R. Kelly was hit with new charges, including racketeering and sex trafficking. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
2021 – R. Kelly’s trial on the charges of racketeering and sex trafficking began. The trial has been delayed multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, on February 2023 in Chicago, A federal judge rejected a call from prosecutors to keep R. Kelly behind bars until he is 100, instead telling the Grammy Award-winning R&B singer he would serve all but one of his 20 years on child sex convictions simultaneously with a previous sentence.
