R. Kelly jury selected: 7 men, 5 women will hear the R&B singer's sex trafficking case
NEW YORK — R&B star R. Kelly will face an anonymous jury made up of seven men and five women when his New York City sex trafficking trial goes forward next week with opening statements.
The panel was sworn in on Wednesday after dozens of potential jurors were screened by U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly in federal court in Brooklyn.
The judge sought assurances from prospective jurors that they could remain impartial despite the bad publicity swirling around Kelly since his 2019 arrest. Some told her that they were mainly aware of Kelly from his smash hit “I Believe I Can Fly.” Many said they knew little or nothing about the case.
Kelly, 54, won multiple Grammys for “I Believe I Can Fly,” a 1996 song that became an inspirational anthem played at school graduations, weddings, advertisements and elsewhere.
R. Kelly sex trafficking trial begins search for a jury, amid COVID-19 precautions
The jury selection spanned three days with Kelly seen on a video feed sitting impassively at the defense table, wearing glasses and dressed in a suit. The scene was beamed into an overflow courtroom after a judge took the unusual step of barring the press and public from watching trial in person, citing coronavirus concerns.
The multiplatinum-selling singer has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of leading an enterprise of managers, bodyguards and other employees who helped him recruit women and girls for sex. Federal prosecutors say the group selected victims at concerts and other venues and arranged for them to travel to see Kelly.
Defense lawyers have said Kelly’s alleged victims were groupies who turned up at his shows and made it known they “were dying to be with him.” The women only started accusing him of abuse years later when public sentiment shifted in the #MeToo era, they said.
The trial had been expected to start earlier in the year. But opening statements were moved to Aug. 18 after Kelly fired his original lawyers.
What to expect: R. Kelly faces his first trial on sex-trafficking charges
Jurors are expected to hear testimony from several of his accusers.
A judge ruled earlier this month that prosecutors are allowed to present evidence about how Kelly allegedly had "sexual contact" with then- teenage singer Aaliyah, referred to as "Jane Doe #1," according to court documents, including their secret marriage.
The outline of the story of Kelly and Aaliyah, who died in a 2001 plane crash, has long been known although Kelly has never admitted to wrongdoing. They secretly married in 1994, when she was 15 and he was 27 – allegedly after he bribed a government official to obtain a fake ID for her showing her age as 18, according to a 55-page motion filed by prosecutors in July. The marriage was soon annulled.
In a pre-trial motion, prosecutors allege that Kelly believed she became pregnant, so he secretly arranged a marriage to protect himself from possible criminal charges, because a wife can't be forced to testify against a husband.
"It's clearly relevant and it clearly shows a motive for Racketeering Act Number One, so that is admissible," U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly ruled.
Contributing: Maria Puente
R. Kelly jury to hear how he illegally wed underage Aaliyah at his sex-trafficking trial
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: R. Kelly jury selected: 7 men, 5 women will hear sex trafficking case
