R. Kelly launches another attempt to overturn conviction
Chicago, Illinois - R. Kelly is now requesting a new trial or an acquittal of his conviction on charges of child pornography and sexual abuse.
The 55-year-old disgraced musician was found guilty of three counts of child pornography by a Chicago jury in September.
The charges stem from a videotape Kelly made in which he sexually abused his then-underage goddaughter.
Each of the three counts carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Per The Chicago Tribune, Kelly's lawyer Jennifer Bonjean filed the two motions in Chicago's federal court on Tuesday. The attorney says there isn't enough evidence that the disgraced rapper "coerced" the victims, among other claims.
The motion for a new trial is based on alleged misstatements by Dr. Darrel Turner, who provided expert testimony on the grooming of underage victims by sexual predators.
Bonjean claims that Turner misrepresented his billing prices for prosecutors to the jury. "Had the jurors known that Dr. Turner actively misled them, the jurors would likely have rejected his testimony outright," she wrote in the motion.
While he awaits his sentencing from the Chicago conviction, Kelly has already been sentenced to 30 years in prison by a New York jury on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.
Cover photo: IMAGO / ZUMA Wire