R. Kelly has been placed on suicide watch.
We previously reported that Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison in sex trafficking case. U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly sentenced Kelly after a nearly three-hour hearing. His victims reportedly held hands while the sentence was read.“ These crimes were calculated and carefully planned and regularly executed for almost 25 years,” Judge Donnelly says. “You taught them that love is enslavement and violence.”
Federal prosecutors wrote in their sentencing letter R. Kelly has shown “no remorse” and for decades “exhibited a callous disregard” for the effects of his abuse on victims. “He committed these crimes using his fame and stardom as both a shield, which prevented close scrutiny or condemnation of his actions,” prosecutors wrote. “And a sword, which gave him access to wealth and a network of enablers to facilitate his crimes, and an adoring fan base from which to cull his victims.”
Following the sentencing, reports claim that Kelly is on suicide watch although his attorney says he is not suicidal. “It’s punishment for being high-profile. And it’s horrifying frankly,” his attorney said. “To put someone under suicide watch under those conditions is cruel and unusual when they don’t need it.”
R. Kelly has been placed on suicide watch at the federal detention facility in New York where he is being held after he was sentenced this week to 30 years in prison on racketeering and sex trafficking charges, his lawyer said Friday. https://t.co/XDHMnFgzS6
— CNN (@CNN) July 1, 2022