In the latest update in the ongoing legal developments with R. Kelly, the R&B musician pleaded not guilty to 10 charges of aggravated sexual assault. The plea was made in court on Monday morning, and it follows a long string of sexual abuse allegations which followed R. Kelly throughout this career. Here's what we know.
As it was reported by CNN, the plea was made by Steve Greenberg, R. Kelly's attorney, in Chicago at the start of this week. Additionally, Greenberg made a note to say that R. Kelly has also turned in his passport. Kelly was seen in court wearing an orange jumpsuit. It was the second time the world-famous musician had appeared in court the past two days. The bail is currently placed at $1 million.
He is currently unable to pay that bond, reportedly due to a series of financial problems which plague the musician outside of his legal hassles -- including, but not limited to, unpaid rent, unpaid child support and what R. Kelly says was "mismanagement" of funds, including "bad deals" and other cash-strapped woes.
To leave the confinements of the cell, R. Kelly would only need to produce 10 percent of the bail, which would be $100,000. But Steve Greenberg claims that is still too much money for the musician to pay, and he is currently broke at the moment and, therefore, unable to leave jail anytime soon. With that, R. Kelly will be spending his days split between Cook County Jail and the courthouse. And that's where he will stay until something changes. The next court date is currently scheduled for March 22.
R. Kelly has been accused of sexual abuse by four separate women, with three of the women claiming they were underage when the reported assault occurred. The accusations of abuse occurred throughout 12 years, between 1998 and 2010. There is reportedly video evidence of one of the alleged sexual assaults as well.
In the terms of the bond, in addition to turning in his passport to the courts, R. Kelly must not make contact with anyone under the age of 18. The legal matter will continue to be discussed in the courts and in the media throughout the next few months and the remainder of 2019. We'll keep you posted on the developments.
The accusations against R. Kelly have been present throughout the past two decades, although they received more public interest with the release of the harrowing Lifetime documentary series, Surviving R. Kelly. The six-part television program premiered in the first week of 2019, and it has sparked no shortage of attention on social media, drawing more people into the unfolding criminal case.
More information regarding R. Kelly's criminal proceedings is expected to arrive in the next few weeks. Meanwhile, we'll continue to keep you posted on the latest news in film, television, pop culture, and a whole lot more right here at CinemaBlend.
