R KELLY SINGER FULL
R KELLY SINGER TRIAL
R KELLY SINGER FREE

Prosecutors in the different districts may all see winning convictions and sentences as insurance that Kelly would stay behind bars - even if an appeals court ends up tossing some convictions.

R KELLY SINGER FREE

Kelly could go free immediately if state prosecutors and federal prosecutors in Chicago chose to drop their cases and the New York convictions were overturned. The possibility that the New York convictions could be overturned is one factor. What else could be the reason for going ahead with other trials? They may ask, вЂWhy spend (money and time) on Kelly when he is already facing decades behind bars.вЂ™вЂќ вЂњThey have murders and serious crimes to prosecute. They would be spending money they don't have,вЂќ he said. Turner thought it was more likely that the state cases could be dropped, especially if Kelly is convicted in federal court in Chicago and receives additional prison time.

R KELLY SINGER TRIAL

US attorney offices also effectively have unlimited resources, so the costs and time needed for a trial wonвЂ™t dissuade them, he added. That attitude has been particularly pronounced when it comes to Kelly. Turner said the typical mindset in US attorneyвЂ™s offices is to remain persistent and aggressive. But if that sentence is thrown out, Turner said Kelly would be looking at completing what his lawyers would hope are lower sentences in the other districts.

Greenberg said there was reason to think Kelly could prevail with that appeal.

R KELLY SINGER FULL

Turner said the advantage to Kelly of a deal ending the prospect of more trials is that his attorneys would be able to turn their full attention to the New York appeal. They would also want assurances prosecutors wonвЂ™t press for consecutive sentences. KellyвЂ™s attorneys likely would not agree to anything that involves the possibility of extending the 30-year sentence and would only sign a deal that foresees sentences lower than 30 years. They could be if Kelly agrees to take responsibility for the crimes charged. Would prosecutors be open to a plea deal? R Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison for using his superstardom to subject young fans - some just children - to systematic sexual abuse. In this courtroom sketch, R.Kelly briefly addresses Judge Ann Donnelly during his sentencing in federal court, Wednesday in New York. Turner said he expected prosecutors would ask for such a consecutive sentence but that a judge would most likely impose a concurrent sentence - meaning they would be served simultaneously. If Kelly is convicted in US District Court in Chicago, his judge could order that Kelly serve that sentence after his New York sentence is complete, said Phil Turner, a former federal prosecutor in Chicago with no tie to Kelly's cases. Kelly must weigh the likelihood of winning the Chicago federal case against agreeing to a deal that includes more prison time, Greenberg said.Д«ut Greenberg believes the cases against Kelly in Cook County and in Minnesota are far weaker and that Kelly could secure acquittals in those state courts. She said earlier that Kelly would appeal his New York convictions. вЂњI suspect there have been discussionsвЂќ between KellyвЂ™s federal trial-team lawyers and prosecutors, Greenberg said.ДЄ message seeking comment from KellyвЂ™s lead attorney in his federal cases, Jennifer Bonjean, was not immediately returned. The chances are greater after the sentence handed down in New York, said Steve Greenberg, a long-time Kelly lawyer who represents Kelly in the Cook County case. Both have been on the back burner while the federal cases play out. The two other cases are state cases: a multiple count sex-abuse case in Cook County, Illinois, where Chicago is located, and a solicitation case in Hennepin County, Minnesota. Kelly faces charges that he and two co-defendants fixed his state child pornography trial in 2008 when he was acquitted.

Chicago is KellyвЂ™s hometown and where many of his accusers live, so interest is expected to be especially intense. HereвЂ™s a look at the potential impact of KellyвЂ™s lengthy prison term in New York on those other cases:ДЄ federal trial in Chicago is slated to begin next, on 15 August. That prospect, said one of his lawyers not involved in the New York trial, could lead Kelly to pursue a plea deal. Chicago: R Kelly could be in his 80s before the American singer is free again, based on a 30-year prison term imposed this week by a New York federal judge for parlaying his fame to sexually abuse young fans, including some who were children.ДЄnd if the 55-year-old loses at three related trials in the coming months, he could be staring at decades more behind bars.

R kelly singer