R. Kelly‘s long criminal history and charges date back to the early 1990s. Throughout the early 2000s, he faced sexual abuse charges and was eventually convicted of child pornography in 2022. Kelly vowed to appeal his decades-long prison sentence, but his former record producer’s appeal was dismissed in 2024.
Learn more about R. Kelly’s case and get the latest information on his whereabouts below.
What did R. Kelly do?
Most of Mr. Kelly’s accusations date back to the early 1990s, but leaked recordings of his alleged sexual encounters with minors did not surface until 2002. The recording showed Mr. Kelly and an unidentified teenager who was underage at the time. After he was charged with child pornography, he pleaded not guilty. His trial began in 2008, and Kelly was acquitted.
Over the next decade, multiple women made shocking accusations against the former singer-songwriter. In 2019, Kelly was charged with 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse. He denied all charges and his defense team entered a not guilty plea. Nevertheless, that same year, he was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges including child pornography, enticement of a minor, and obstruction of justice. Associated Press.
Kelly’s federal trial began in New York in 2021. The outlet said he was convicted of violating the Mann Act, which prohibits transporting people across state lines “for immoral purposes.”
R. Kelly’s prison sentence
In 2022, Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison in New York. Later that year, a Chicago jury convicted him of three counts of child pornography and three counts of child enticement. However, the jury acquitted him of a fourth pornography charge, a conspiracy to obstruct justice related to a 2008 trial, three counts of conspiracy to receive child pornography, and two additional charges of enticement.
In 2023, a Chicago federal judge sentenced Kelly to 20 years in prison for child pornography and solicitation of lesser charges. He was reportedly ordered to serve all but one of them concurrently with separate 30-year prison sentences for racketeering and sex trafficking convictions in New York. In 2024, the Chicago Court of Appeals upheld his 20-year prison sentence for a child sex conviction.
Is R. Kelly in prison?
As of April 2023, Kelly is with FCI Butner in North Carolina, according to the Associated Press. He was initially at the Chicago Metropolitan Correctional Center.
When is R. Kelly’s release date?
by Chicago-Sun-Times, Kelly is currently scheduled to be released in 2045.