Music fans in Maryland following the allegations against R. Kelly might be interested to learn that a federal indictment has been updated with new charges against the former R&B singer. This marks the sixth arraignment for the 53-year-old man. New abuse allegations were added to the federal indictment to include charges stemming from another accuser. The new accuser is known only as Minor 6 in the documents.
The lawyer for Kelly entered a plea of not guilty on behalf of the singer. The new charges might lead to another superseding indictment in April although no plans were made during the hearing.
In February 2020, the superseding indictment was unsealed, revealing 13 counts that included multiple counts of child pornography. The superseding indictment is similar to the original indictment, which also had 13 counts. The new indictment makes mention of the new accuser. Prosecutors are planning on adding another victim to the allegations when the indictment is superseded in the future. Kelly has denied the sexual allegations since the beginning of the case. The trial was originally set to begin in April 2020. Kelly’s defense lawyers said they needed more time to prepare; the trial is now set to begin in October 2020.
Anyone who is accused of a crime is guaranteed certain rights in the Constitution. A defense lawyer who specializes in sex crimes might help their client throughout the criminal investigation and trial. In this case, much of the alleged child pornography evidence that R. Kelly is being charged with was found on a computer. Police must have the proper warrant before searching a computer. If these warrants are not in place, any evidence found may be inadmissible in court.