andPOP - Pop Culture With Substance

This news might be a few days old, and it might involve a totally irrelevant celebrity, but it just had to be reported on.

R. Kelly (famous for the one-liner in “Ignition” and a criminal pedophilia lawsuit a few years back) wants to finish the album Michael Jackson had started recording before his death. No lie. You gotta give this guy credit for trying but I think you would agree this is a little tasteful and way too soon.

After both of his nephews were suspects of attempted robbery on November 6, R. Kelly’s 16-year-old nephew Brayel Kelly- who was injured after being shot in the incident- has been charged as an adult with attempted murder.

According to MTV News, Calumet City police said that Brayel went into a barbershop and allegedly tried to rob the owner by producing a gun and demanding that the owner place his money and jewelry in a plastic bag. However, after the owner cooperated, he also took out a weapon, which caused Kelly and the owner to exchange gunshots, leaving Kelly shot in the back.

Carey Kelly told reporters that one bullet collapsed his son’s lung and the other pierced his liver, and the boy remains hospitalized in intensive care at Advocate Christ Medical Center.

Brayel has been charged with attempted murder, attempted armed robbery, and aggravated discharge of a firearm. Cook County Judge Reginald Baker set his bond for $200,000 on Friday. A preliminary hearing on the matter is scheduled for December 3. He faces six to 30 years in prison if convicted, according to the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.

Brayel’s older brother Brandon, who allegedly acted as a lookout, has not been charged.

R. Kelly is experiencing a couple of family issues lately, as his nephews Brayel and Brandon Kelly are suspects in police custody, for an armed-robbery attempt, following a shooting at a Chicago-area barbershop Thursday that ended with one of them in the hospital.

Brayel is in intensive care in the Advocate Christ Medical Center, after being shot in the abdomen and chest area.

According to MTV News, police were told that the two brothers went for a haircut in a barbershop, however after receiving the haircut, one of the brothers apparently produced a gun, in an attempt to rob the barbershop owner. The man complied, while placing money and jewlery in a plastic bag, before then also producing his own weapon.

Both exchanged gun shots before the police found and arrested the two boys a few blocks away, with Brayel shot in the back.

R. Kelly’s brother as well as the boys’ father, Carey Kelly, told reporters that he believes his sons were the victims of the attempted robbery, not the perpetrators, since there is a widespread belief that the more famous Kelly had shared his wealth with his family.

The Cook County state’s attorney’s office, which had previously tried R. Kelly on charges of child pornography earlier this year, would be the prosecutor in the case if the brothers are charged with attempted robbery. The office told MTV News that they are currently looking at “all the facts being compiled by the police.”

Brandon and Brayel are among Carey Kelly’s six children. Carey previously told MTV News in 2006 that his sons, but not his daughters, used to have a close relationship with their famous uncle. “My boys have been around Robert to go to his house, shoot pool, play basketball, before all this,” he said, referring to the criminal allegations against R. Kelly. After a falling out, those visits were no more.

After less than a day of deliberations, a jury acquitted R. Kelly of all 14 counts of child pornography charges, reports E! News.

“R. Kelly was found not guilty, because they had the best jury that Cook County could produce,” Kelly’s attorney, Sam Adam Jr. said outside the courtroom.
Although it took more than six years for the case to go to court, the trial only began last month and lasted four weeks.

R. Kelly was charged with allegedly videotaping himself having sex with a girl prosecutors claimed was a minor at the time. The alleged victim, now 23, refused to testify against Kelly.

If convicted, the R & B singer could have faced a minimum of four years in prison and a maximum of 15 years and would have had to register as a sex offender in Illinois.

Kelly did not testify during the trial.

Both the defence and prosecution made their closing arguments yesterday for the month-long R. Kelly child pornography trial yesterday.

The prosecution replayed the 27-minute video for the jury, which allegedly shows the R&B superstar having sex with–and then peeing on–a girl who was only 13 or 14 at the time.

The Assistant State’s Attorney told the jury Kelly was “directing [the girl] to dance, where to stand, when to stop urinating.”

But both Kelly, 41, and the alleged victim, now 23, have denied being on the tape.

Kelly’s defence attorney told the court yesterday that if the jury was to convict Kelly, they would also be condemning the girl the prosecution says is on the tape:

“In order to [find Kelly guilty], and I apologize for saying this, but you are going to have to call her 14 times, individually and collectively, a whore.”

The sex tape that allegedly features Kelly and the girl, who is the daughter of one of singer’s associates, was released in February 2002.

Kelly’s fate now rests in the hands of the jury, who were sequestered at a motel last night. If convicted, Kelly faces up to 15 years in prison.

Deliberations resumed at 8:30 a.m. this morning.

R. Kelly’s trial is full of allegations, with the newest claim coming straight from the defence lawyers.

According to the singer’s lawyers, the people who testified they had a copy of the sex tape, which R. Kelly is accused of making with an underage girl, should be guilty of child pornography for not turning the tape into authorities. At the same time, the defence argued that the tape may have been doctored and that the sexual encounter between the R&B singer and the underage girl never even occurred.

Although the jury had the day off, Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan heard arguments all day Friday, from both sides, after being informed that R. Kelly’s lawyers wanted to bring charges against some of the prosecution’s witnesses.

A judge denied media request to get access to sealed documents in the R. Kelly child-pornography trial.

“Of paramount concern is that the defendant gets a fair trial,” Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan wrote. “The torrent of media interest in this case has prompted entry of the order which prevents the serious and imminent threat that this case would be tried in the media.”

Arguing that the public has a constitutional right to observe the court proceedings, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Associated Press and Chicago Public Radio asked for access to records of the closed-door hearings in the case.

Although judge Gaughan acknowledged the need and importance of media coverage in covering criminal justice, he said his ruling is “narrowly tailored” to preserve Kelly’s rights to a fair trial, citing the 2004 ruling in the Michael Jackson criminal case as precedent.

Kelly, who has pleaded not guilty, is charged with videotaping himself having sex with an underage girl.

The jury is complete for the R. Kelly child-pornography trial.

Both the prosecution and defense have chosen and agreed upon twelve jurors—one of whom is a rape victim – and four alternates. The jury consists of mostly men – with eight men and four women – while two men and two women will serve as alternates. Eight of the jurors are white; four are black. Two alternates are black, one is white and one is Latino and, age wise, the jury is said to be split even between young and middle-age adults.

Opening statements in the case are to begin Tuesday.

Kelly, who denies the charges, stands accused of videotaping himself having sex with an underage girl.

R. Kelly’s lawyer has asked for another delay in his ongoing child pornography trial.

Kelly’s lawyer, Ed Genson is asking that jury selection, slated to begin May 9th, be delayed because of a recent news report in the Chicago Sun-Times.

The Sun-Times published a report on Saturday stating that a witness has been added to the witness list who claims to have had a threesome with Kelly, 41, and the allegedly underage girl who appears in the now infamous sex tape.

Kelly’s lawyer wants jury selection postponed due to the amount of publicity the article generated over the weekend.

Kelly, whose real name is Robert Kelly, has continued to deny the allegations made against him, claiming he is not the man on the tape.

Judge Vincent Gaughan is expected to rule on the request on Friday.

A new witness will testify she engaged in a threesome with R. Kelly and an underage girl at the R&B star’s upcoming child pornography trail, reported the Chicago Sun-Times. Kelly is accused of filming himself and the alleged underage girl, who is now in her 20s, having sex. Sources reportedly told the paper the witness will claim the girl in the controversial videotape was underage.

Kelly is currently charged with 14 counts of child pornography for allegedly videotaping having sex with the girl who is believed have been 13 or 14 at the time. If convicted, Kelly faces up to 15 years in prison.