Judge denies R. Kelly a release from prison, but lawyer want his conviction vacated
Judge denies R. Kelly a release from prison, but lawyer want his conviction vacated
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R. Kelly seeks immediate prison release over alleged murder plot
R. Kelly's attorneys have filed an emergency motion requesting his immediate release over claims that officials solicited a fellow inmate to murder him in prison.
unbranded - Entertainment
A Chicago judge ruled that her court can't release R. Kelly, to home confinement, denying his lawyers' efforts to have the convicted "Ignition" singer removed from prison.
The motion for Kelly's release, filed June 17 in the Chicago court in which he was originally convicted, comes after his legal team alleged the singer overdosed on medication given to him by prison staff last week
The 58-year-old singer has been serving a 30-year sentence for racketeering and sex trafficking since 2022. He is serving his sentence in the Federal Correctional Institute facility in Butner, North Carolina.
The motion for release claimed Kelly's life is in imminent danger. However, Judge Martha Pacold denied the motion June 19, according to a ruling obtained by USA TODAY, saying her court doesn't have the jurisdiction it needs.
Pacold's ruling specified that the denial did not take a side on Kelly's claims that his alleged overdose was a "murder plot" by the Bureau of Prisons.
The singer's team team claimed three Bureau of Prisons officials allegedly devised a plot to have him killed by another inmate. The attorneys allege that after being placed in a solitary confinement setting earlier this month, prison staff provided him an "overdose quantity" of medication compared to his normal anxiety and sleep medication dosages, leading to his hospitalization.
They also claimed that Kelly, born Robert Kelly, was sent to Duke University Hospital and then removed allegedly against medical advice by law enforcement officials as he was also seeking medical treatment for blood clots.
The Bureau of Prisons has declined to comment on "pending litigation" to USA TODAY.
Pacold's ruling also canceled a planned hearing scheduled for Friday, June 20.
In the government's response to Kelly's emergency motions, federal prosecutors have called his claims "fanciful" and "theatrical."
In addition to logistical issues − including being filed at the wrong court and location, using the wrong kind of case and not following proper procedure − federal prosecutors said Kelly's motion "makes a mockery of the harm suffered by Kelly's victims" and they accused him of being a "master manipulator."
If Kelly were to be released from prison to home confinement, despite "separate 30-year and 20-year sentences" handed down by New York City and Chicago courts, "every convicted murderer, rapist, and terrorist will have a newfound shot at freedom," the response continued.
More: R. Kelly hospitalized after prison overdose, alleged murder plot, lawyers say
R. Kelly's lawyer will file to vacate his convictions in Chicago, he says
After Pacold's June 19th ruling, Kelly's lawyer Beau Brindley said he would file a new effort to vacate Kelly's convictions in Chicago in their entirety, based on what he called "newly discovered evidence."
Brindley also stated his request would call for an immediate release on bond, "pending its litigation."
"We are not surprised by this ruling as we knew that technical jurisdiction would be a challenge under these circumstances. However, we had no choice but to act immediately given explicit evidence of a threat to Robert Kelly's life," Brindley alleged in a statement provided to USA TODAY.
As of the issuance of this statement on June 19, Brindley and his team had not yet filed their new motion.
R. Kelly asks for pardon from President Donald Trump
The back-and-forth between the singer's lawyer and the Chicago-area judge is the latest in a week-long series of events and public statements from Kelly's legal team and federal prosecutors regarding his condition and conviction. In addition to the motion for home confinement, Brindley also made a public plea to President Donald Trump for a pardon for the singer.
"It is this immediate and imminent threat that compels us again to seek the intervention of President Trump," Brindely said in a June 17 statement. "The courts do not move as quickly as the efforts to kill this man. President Trump may be the only person who can save the life of R. Kelly."
Contributing: Taijuan Moorman
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