Singer R. Kelly, already behind bars, ordered to pay victims

By Reuters

R. Kelly at a hearing at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse in Chicago on Sept. 17, 2019. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune via AP file)

R. Kelly, the multiplatinum R&B singer convicted twice this year of sex crimes, will be required to pay at least $300,000 in restitution to some of his victims, a federal judge said on Wednesday.

The money will compensate two women, known as Jane and Stephanie, for the costs of therapy and herpes treatment, U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly said at a hearing in Brooklyn.

That figure is likely to rise after prosecutors recalculate the cost of medication for Stephanie.

Donnelly denied prosecutors’ requests to compensate Jane for lost income, and provide any compensation to a third victim known as Sonja.

[…]

Donnelly sentenced Kelly in June to 30 years in prison, after a jury convicted him of racketeering and other charges.

Prosecutors said the 55-year-old Kelly exploited his stardom and wealth over more than two decades to lure women and underage girls into his orbit for sex.

The original article offers more details.

This high-profile case comes a decade after we asked if Black men care about sexual assault.

More Black culture articles.

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