R. Kelly Claims His Life Is At Risk Amid COVID-19 Epidemic

Source: Cook County Department of Corrections / Cook County Department of Corrections

R. Kelly claims it’s not safe behind bars amid the international Coronavirus pandemic and has begged a federal judge to let him out on bail as he awaits trial on child sex abuse charges.

Lawyers for Kelly, 53, filed court papers Thursday arguing that making the disgraced singer languish in jail while not yet being convicted amounted to making him “drink poison,” according to the motion, which was obtained by BOSSIP.

Kelly’s lawyers said Illinois had been under lockdown since earlier this month, which includes staying away from other people and practicing good hygiene. Kelly believes that none of these measures can be effectively done from behind bars, where he says disease is rife and medical care is sub-par.

“This court should consider the ‘total harm and benefits to prisoner and society’ that continued pretrial imprisonment of Mr. Kelly will yield, relative to the heightened health risks posed to Mr. Kelly during this rapidly encroaching pandemic,” Kelly’s legal team wrote.

There aren’t any screening protocols in place for visitors coming to Kelly’s jail, and there is just one bottle of hand sanitizer available in the visiting room, but it’s for staff only, according to his court docs. He said there’s no soap in the prison bathrooms and its almost impossible to stay clean.

If released, Kelly said he’ll live a quiet life in Chicago with his gal pal Joycelyn Savage in a loft apartment and pledges to keep his nose clean.

The judge has not ruled on Kelly’s motion.

Kelly has been locked up since July 2019 on criminal charges of making, then concealing a sex tape involving a minor, racketeering, kidnapping and infecting a teenager with an incurable STD. Kelly has denied the allegations against him but faces life in prison when he goes to trial later this year.