R. Kelly Appeals His Federal Sex Crimes Conviction In New York

R. Kelly filed an appeal over his 2021 conviction of federal sex crimes in New York.

According to a report TMZ published on Wednesday, April 19, the R&B singer's legal team listed a slew of reasons why Kelly should have his conviction overturned. Kelly's lawyers believe the jury was tainted from the start of the trial. They say at least two of the jurors who participated in the trial have admitted that they watched Lifetime's "Surviving R. Kelly" while four them claimed they prejudged Kelly before they convicted. They believe those jurors should've never been allowed to serve on the jury.

Kelly's lawyers are convinced that their client didn't receive a fair trial. In the legal documents, they also allege that the government failed to prove his guilty in court despite his unanimous guilty conviction of all nine federal counts. Kelly claims he has an explanation for all the girls and boys he allegedly groomed and sexually abused. The singer said some of the victims were at least 18-years-old when he met and had a sexual relationship with them. As for the minors, he says all the girls misled him about their real age.

That's not all. Kelly's lawyers also claim some of the witnesses who testified, like his former employees and associates, lied about numerous topics while on the stand. The singer said his ex-employees, especially the ones who were lower on the totem pole, didn't have access to knowledge about some of the things they testified about. They also claim the jury shouldn't have heard the details about Kelly's personal life that were discussed during the trial, from his sexual preferences to STD's. His legal team believes those details unnecessary and were used to convince the jury to find Kelly guilty.

Kelly is requesting for the conviction to be overturned or a new trial. He's currently serving a 30-year sentence in addition to the consecutive 20-year sentence from his Chicago case.