# Jury acquits R. Kelly of all counts ... How'd THAT happen? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 13, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855 "2008-06-13T20:38:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/1 "2008-06-13T20:38:07Z")
[http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080613/D919D0MO7.html](http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080613/D919D0MO7.html) Wow. I didn’t see that one coming. (\<----- not sarcasm, I really didn’t see it coming) I thought for sure he’d get sent up the river, especially when I read that his defense attorneys showed a digitally altered video showing a headless couple having sex, you know, to prove that that _other_ tape (People’s Exhibit #1) could also have been altered to put R. Kelly’s head on some other dude’s body. What do you think caused the doubt in the jurors’ minds? The elusive mole? The female witness who swore it wasn’t her on the tape? (Was she paid off?) What? It seemed like this was a no-brainer, but the jurors proved otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/2 "2008-06-13T20:39:38Z")
[QUOTE=Spiff] [http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080613/D919D0MO7.html](http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080613/D919D0MO7.html) The female witness who swore it wasn’t her on the tape? (Was she paid off?) [/QUOTE] Round these parts it’s called ATM–Amnesia Through Money ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/3 "2008-06-13T20:51:53Z")
Seems like someone could also get a mole sewed on for a few thou and for it to be hush hush for a few more. Pocket change for him. But I haven’t seen the evidence, so my opinion means nothing. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/4 "2008-06-13T20:54:54Z")
There’s been a hilarious blow by blow in Slate. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/5 "2008-06-13T20:55:15Z")
[QUOTE=Spiff] [http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080613/D919D0MO7.html](http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080613/D919D0MO7.html) What do you think caused the doubt in the jurors’ minds? The elusive mole? The female witness who swore it wasn’t her on the tape? (Was she paid off?) [/QUOTE] A lot of burden on the prosecution to prove that it was Kelly in the video, that it was female that they said it was, and that it was made while she was underage. Also, the girl that was alledgedly in the video never testified for either the prosecution or the defense. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/6 "2008-06-13T21:22:31Z")
The girl apparently didn’t care and there was doubt about wether the person in the video had R. Kellys mole or not. I haven’t seen the video so i can’t comment but why do people act like it was open and shut case? have you seen the video? and does it matter if he was set free when the “victim” doesn’t really care? ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/7 "2008-06-13T21:29:36Z")
[QUOTE=DigitalC] have you seen the video? [/QUOTE] I strongly advise anyone against answering “yes” to this question, regardless of the truth. Admitting to a felony here on the **SDMB** would be bad form, no? ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/8 "2008-06-13T21:38:23Z")
[QUOTE=Spiff] It seemed like this was a no-brainer, but the jurors proved otherwise. [/QUOTE] I’d like to believe there’s a mechanism for preventing people who think a criminal case is a “no brainer” from ever serving on a jury. It sounds like the prosecution simply didn’t have unambiguous evidence. If they spent hours arguing about whether the man on the tape did or didn’t have a mole on his back, it couldn’t have been very clear video. There was contradictory testimony, and the prosecution’s star witness admitted to having stolen from the defendant. Not really an airtight case. Personally, I’d take Kelly’s dick off with a trowel if he came within twenty yards of any female I care about, but a juror has to decide, unemotionally, whether a specific charge has been been proven beyond a reasonable doubt. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2008, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/9 "2008-06-13T21:43:28Z")
[QUOTE=Zsofia] There’s been a hilarious blow by blow in Slate. [/QUOTE] Yes, there has. As described, the defense’s explanations were completely preposterous, and I was convinced Kelly would skate. Whether it’s inherently wrong for a man in his thirties to urinate on a 14-year-old girl he’s having sex with is a question I’ll leave to Dopers far sager than I. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/10 "2008-06-14T02:10:17Z")
[QUOTE=Vinyl Turnip] Whether it’s inherently wrong for a man in his thirties to urinate on a 14-year-old girl he’s having sex with is a question I’ll leave to Dopers far sager than I. [/QUOTE] Equally sage Dopers will comment on whether it’s criminal and worthy of 15 years incarceration in addition to if it’s “wrong”. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/11 "2008-06-14T06:21:19Z")
Money. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/12 "2008-06-14T16:32:17Z")
[I wonder if the jury saw this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmBRBUZ7UWc) ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/13 "2008-06-14T16:40:18Z")
They should have convicted him because of “Trapped in the Closet” alone ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/14 "2008-06-14T16:45:31Z")
no mole on tape (mostly) + star witness admitting she stole from defendant = reasonable doubt ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/15 "2008-06-14T16:50:34Z")
It’s because there was no “victim”. The state was going after Kelly on the premise of having sex with a minor, but if the minor denies it happened unless the evidence is 100% unambiguous and the star witness unimpeachable ([and she was very peachable](http://www.slate.com/id/2192808/entry/2192809/)) your case is difficult to make. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/16 "2008-06-14T16:53:55Z")
[QUOTE= astro] unless the evidence is 100% unambiguous and the star witness unimpeachable (and she was very peachable) your case is difficult to make. [/QUOTE] Did you say _"peeable?_ ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/17 "2008-06-14T17:00:56Z")
The fact is that it’s very difficult to convict a celebrity in the US, no matter how convincing the evidence. OJ, Robert Blake, Phil Spector, the list goes on. If you’re famous you have every chance of getting away with murder or any other crime. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/18 "2008-06-14T17:03:28Z")
[QUOTE=Cisco] [I wonder if the jury saw this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmBRBUZ7UWc) [/QUOTE] That’s got to be up in the top 5 best Dave Chapelle skits ever! ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/19 "2008-06-14T19:00:39Z")
Pretty simple, really. The jury decided that Kelly was not the guy on the tape, and the alleged underage victim was not the girl on the tape. That was that. Now, if the prosecution can find the guy and girl on the tape, they can play the game again. If you have any inside information, please go to the authorities with it. If you are basing your opinion upon “trial by gossip media,” I don’t have any time for you. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2008, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855/20 "2008-06-14T21:26:29Z")
> [@](#): > > **Tom Dubois:** Can you describe the events leading up to the shooting of the video? > > **Underaged Girl:** Yeah, he asked if he could pee on me, and I said fo sho. I mean, it’s _R. Kelly_, the pied piper of R&B. I’ve been peed on by guys who don’t even have record deals. Shit, if I didn’t wanna get peed on, I would have moved out the way! –The Boondocks - “The Trial of R. Kelly” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jury-acquits-r-kelly-of-all-counts-howd-that-happen/452855.md?page=2)