R. Kelly has officially been sentenced, and the “King Of R&B” faces several years behind bars. According to CNN, U.S. District Court Judge Ann Donnelly sentenced the singer in a Brooklyn courtroom to 30 years in prison after he was convicted on all nine counts in his sex trafficking case.
Judge Donnelly said that her sentence is one “I would have imposed regardless of the guidelines.” In the hearing, she spent several minutes detailing instances of abuse and violence discussed during the trial and addressed R. Kelly directly about what he did to his victims.
“These crimes were calculated and carefully planned and regularly executed for almost 25 years,” she said. “You taught them that love is enslavement and violence.” Reports show that prosecutors asked the judge to sentence R. Kelly to more than 25 years behind bars during sentencing, citing “the need to protect the public from further crimes.”
However, the singer’s defense attorneys asked for ten years or fewer, saying prosecutors’ request was “tantamount to a life sentence.” The singer declined to speak before the sentencing was read.
The LA Times reports that the Chicago native declined to make a statement because of pending litigation, his attorney said.
When asked directly by the judge, he said: “Yes, your honor, that is my wish.” Although R.Kelly didn’t speak out, it didn’t stop his victims. One who went by Jane Doe No. 2 stated, “You degraded me, humiliated me, and broke my spirit. I wished I would die because of how you degraded me.”
She continued recalling an incident when she was forced to perform oral sex on the GRAMMY-award-winning singer after playing basketball in a car full of his friends. “Do you remember that?!” she said. “You couldn’t care less. I avoided your name and your songs and suffocated with fear. What you did left a permanent stain on my life.”
Roommates, do you think 30 years is appropriate?
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