R. Kelly trial over child sexual abuse imagery, jury rigging to start in Chicago

Convicted sex offender Robert Kelly will go back in front of a judge on Wednesday, less than two months after he was sentenced in New York to 30 years in prison for trafficking charges.

This time, the former singer known by his stage name R. Kelly, is on trial in Chicago over child sexual abuse imagery and more trafficking accusations.

Opening statements will be heard on Wednesday and are expected to last several hours.

This time, Kelly is in the dock with two co-defendants, Derrel McDavid and Milton Brown, who are also accused of jury rigging in his 2008 pornography trial. He was eventually acquitted in that case.

All three deny any wrongdoing. The material in question is a video Kelly allegedly made of himself assaulting one of his victims when he was 30 and she was 14. The victim is scheduled to testify later in the trial.

Kelly will also have to answer for allegedly sexually assaulting minors and then paying them off or threatening them to keep quiet, similar to what he was convicted of in New York.

es/dj (AP, Reuters)

Article source: https://www.dw.com/en/r-kelly-trial-over-child-sexual-abuse-imagery-jury-rigging-to-start-in-chicago/a-62839335?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf