R. Kelly Defense loses offer to exclude jurors who watched 'Surviving R. Kelly'

A. Kelly's second trial began Monday in a Chicago courthouse, with his defense losing a bid to exclude potential jurors who have seen the Lifetime docuseries "Surviving R. Kelly."

Kelly was sentenced in June to 30 years in prison, after being convicted in New York last year of racketeering and sex trafficking.

Jury selection began Monday morning in federal court in Chicago, where Kelly faces numerous charges of child pornography and conspiracy to obstruct an investigation. The government alleges that Kelly coerced underage girls into having sex with him, filmed the sex acts, and then paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to retrieve copies of the videos in an effort to thwart the investigation.

The charges relate to Kelly's 2008 trial, in which he was acquitted after the alleged victim refused to testify. Prosecutors allege he provided money and gifts to the girl and her parents in order to trick them into denying that she had sex with Kelly.

These events were covered at length in "Surviving R. Kelly," which debuted in January 2019. In a motion filed Sunday, Kelly's defense attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, argued that any juror who had watched even part of the documentary series should be excluded from the trial.

“Anyone who has seen the documentary would possess information about the allegations in this indictment (and unrelated allegations) that would undoubtedly interfere with their ability to decide the case based on the evidence presented at trial. “, Bonjean wrote. "No one, even a well-meaning person, would be able to purge their brains of the information gleaned from the docuseries or separate the information gleaned from the documentary that was never cross-examined from the testimonies presented. at trial on the same subject. ”

Bonjean noted that the documentary covered some evidence - such as Kelly's relationship with singer Aaliyah - that was excluded from the trial.

Judge Harry Leinenweber on Monday, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Bonjean said on Twitter last week that it would be difficult to find an unbiased jury.

Comments