R. Kelly denied bail in sex crimes case
- A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the R&B artist R. Kelly to jail without bond, delivering a blow to the performer as he faces mounting legal trouble related to accusations of sexual misconduct with minors.
- The singer faces charges stemming from two federal criminal cases, brought in New York and Chicago. He has pleaded not guilty. He was arrested on Thursday in Chicago.
- Before his arrest, Kelly was free on $1 million bond on related state charges. Kelly has pleaded not guilty to those charges as well. Kelly was acquitted of state child pornography charges more than a decade ago.
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the R&B artist R. Kelly to jail without bond, delivering a blow to the performer as he faces mounting legal trouble related to accusations of sexual misconduct with minors.
The singer faces charges stemming from two federal criminal cases, brought in New York and Chicago. He was arrested on Thursday in Chicago, and has been held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center since then. On Tuesday, Kelly pleaded not guilty to the Chicago charges, which include enticing a minor and obstructing justice.
Before his arrest, Kelly was free on $1 million bond on related state charges. Kelly has pleaded not guilty to those charges as well. Kelly was acquitted of state child pornography charges more than a decade ago.
The ruling Tuesday was issued by U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber. It came after Kelly's attorneys had argued that the singer was not a danger to the public, saying the offenses were alleged to have taken place more than a decade ago.
Kelly was wearing an orange jumpsuit and was shackled at the ankles at the time the decision was announced, according to the Associated Press.
According to the New York indictment, Kelly recruited women and girls to participate in sexual activity.
Kelly and his employees, including managers and bodyguards, set restrictive rules for the women and girls, including when they could go to the restroom, prosecutors allege. The indictment accuses Kelly of abusing five women between the late 1990s and 2018 in violation of a federal law that bars transporting women across state lines for any "immoral purpose."
Prosecutors in Illinois brought separate charges, alleging that Kelly conspired to cover-up the existence of tapes featuring minors engaging in sexual activity. The 13-count indictment alleges that Kelly filmed himself having sex with at least four minors, as early as 1998, and later paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to recover the tapes after they disappeared from his "collection."