EdwardKnoxII 0 Report post Posted March 18, 2004 http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,13721,00.html R. Kelly Off the Hook in Florida by Lia Haberman Mar 17, 2004, 2:00 PM PT R. Kelly's gonna fly on a technicality. Prosecutors in Florida have dropped 12 charges of child porn against the R&B singer after a judge tossed out shots of Kelly allegedly having sex with an underage girl because the digital pics were illegally seized. The decision not to appeal the ruling of Polk County Circuit Judge Dennis Maloney was announced Wednesday. "These pictures that were found in Mr. Kelly's possession have been suppressed by the court, and the state cannot prove this case without the evidence," prosecutor Bradford H. Copley wrote in the court filing (which can be found online at The Smoking Gun). After a hearing last Thursday, Maloney agreed with Kelly's defense team that county sheriff's detectives lacked enough evidence to justify the search of Kelly's Florida home when they appealed to a judge for a warrant in June 2002. The snapshots were found on a digital camera, which was discovered wrapped in a towel inside a duffel bag. Kelly's attorney, Ron Toward, argued that detectives failed to mention in their probable cause affidavit used to secure the kiddie-porn search warrant that they had already seen the illicit images while looking for evidence of another vice. Deputies searched Kelly's residence after turning up marijuana at another home the embattled entertainer rented for three business associates and which also served as a studio. It was during the drug search that Detective Robert Mateo uncovered a videocamera and an "unusual amount" of "adult video tapes" stashed in a locked room marked "Private, Do Not Enter." He subsequently asked for a second search warrant to look for kiddie porn. Mateo returned to Kelly's Sunshine State residence the next day with a warrant and noted in his report that he found several pictures of two women engaged in sexual acts and other snapshots of Kelly in a sex act with a girl who was allegedly a minor. But attorneys for the Grammy-winning hitmaker argued that Mateo's affidavit for a search warrant was inadequate because it relied on unspecified info from Chicago authorities and failed to make a connection between the discovery of marijuana and the detection of the cameras and child porn. Kelly could have faced up to 60 years in prison if convicted on the Florida charges. While the "Bump 'n' Grind" singer still faces 14 counts of child pornography in Illinois, last week's ruling opened up the possibility of complete vindication. "As I've said before, I am confident that when all the facts are brought out, people will see that I'm no criminal," Kelly said in a statement. He has already scored a victory of sorts in the Illinois case, too. Last month, prosecutors dismissed seven of the original 21 child pornography charges against Kelly in what they called standard pretrial procedure, but what Kelly's camp said was a clear victory on the singer's way to complete exoneration. Kelly's attorneys have since filed motions to dismiss the remaining Illinois charges--the Cook County Circuit Court has yet to issue a decision. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Spaceman Spiff 0 Report post Posted March 18, 2004 Well, isn't that wonderful. Hey, I bet Rob Feinstein has an idea now... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lomasmoney 0 Report post Posted March 18, 2004 I can't believe that R. kelly was banned from being associated with Michael Jackson. I mean they don't have anything in common. R.Kelly likes underage GIRLS. He's perfectly normal, just like my 9th grade government teacher Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vitamin X Report post Posted September 18, 2008 Bumped because I couldn't find any sort of main R. Kelly thread and this is a great interview. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
treble 0 Report post Posted September 19, 2008 Too bad Chappelle went nuts, because he would have had fun with that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2GOLD 0 Report post Posted September 19, 2008 While the "Bump 'n' Grind" singer still faces 14 counts of child pornography in Illinois, last week's ruling opened up the possibility of complete vindication. "As I've said before, I am confident that when all the facts are brought out, people will see that I'm no criminal," Kelly said in a statement. No see R., people won't see you aren't a criminal. People will see you as the guy who got away with kiddie porn. Little bit different there buddy. People don't see a guy walk out of a courtroom on a technicality and say, "See, I told you he was completely 100% innocent of these crimes." However if his freedom leads to a sequel to the hilariously bad "Trapped in the closest" movie then go R. Kelly! GO! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BUTT 0 Report post Posted September 19, 2008 There already was a sequel to "Trapped in the Closet." Or at least extra chapters. Also, 2GOLD, the post you're responding to is four years old. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Perfxion 0 Report post Posted October 3, 2008 There are 24 chapters to that crap. With another 12 on the way. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
