A U.S. federal appeals court has upheld R. Kelly’s conviction on sex trafficking and racketeering charges, affirming his decades-long prison sentence.
The ruling, issued on Wednesday, February 13, 2025, by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, dismissed claims that prosecutors failed to prove the singer orchestrated a criminal scheme to recruit and exploit women and underage girls.
Writing for the three-judge panel, Circuit Judge Denny Chin stated that prosecutors presented “extensive evidence showing how Kelly ensnared young girls and women into his orbit, endeavored to control their lives, and secured their compliance with his personal and sexual demands through verbal and physical abuse, threats of blackmail, and humiliation.” He added that jurors had sufficient grounds to determine that the 58-year-old singer instilled fear in his victims to ensure they obeyed his demands.
Following the decision, Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, criticized the ruling and suggested a possible appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. She argued that the court’s interpretation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act was overly broad, claiming it misapplied a law originally designed to combat organized crime.
“The decision gives the government limitless discretion to apply the RICO statute to situations absurdly remote from the statute’s intent,” Bonjean stated. “The statute was intended to punish organized crime, not individual conduct.”
spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn declined to comment on the ruling.
R. Kelly, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2021 after being convicted on racketeering and multiple counts of violating the Mann Act, which prohibits the transportation of individuals across state lines for prostitution. His case was one of the most high-profile prosecutions of the #MeToo era.
Once celebrated for his musical achievements, including his 1996 Grammy-winning hit “I Believe I Can Fly,” Kelly now faces years behind bars as his legal battles continue.
