R. Kelly is still facing legal trouble from behind bars. Six of his alleged victims have sued the disgraced singer, claiming he owes over $10 million awarded in a 2022 judgment.
According to People, the victims filed the lawsuit on Jan. 31. In the filing, they assert that Kelly has yet to pay their full $10.3 million judgment. The plaintiffs, Lizette Martinez, Lisa Van Allen, Kelly Rodgers, Faith Rodgers, Roderick Gartell, and Gem Pratts, were supposed to receive over $5.1 million in combined compensatory damages and over $4.5 million in punitive damages, including interest.
They claim that the vast majority of this payment, over $9.9 million, has yet to be paid. In the filing, they named Kelly’s record label, Universal Music, and its sublabel and revenue-sharing platform, IndyBuild. Kelly’s former manager, Donnell Russell, was also listed.
The victims claim that the label, despite its contract with Kelly ending in 2019, “remains contractually obligated to collect revenues and remit music publishing royalties” to the incarcerated singer. Two of the victims, Van Allen and Martinez
recalled their abuse and sexual assault by the “I Believe I Can Fly” singer in the striking docu-series, “Surviving R. Kelly.” The women recalled meeting Kelly as teenagers, as the singer proceeded to have sex with them despite knowing their ages.However, Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Boujean, has spoken out against the lofty payout. Boujean called the judgment “outrageous,” emphasizing how the awarding occurred without her 58-year-old client knowing.
“This outrageous default judgment was entered contrary to court rules, legal precedent, and basic principles of fairness,” expressed the
lawyer.” A New York court conducted a hearing in Mr. Kelly’s absence and without his knowledge while he was incarcerated in Chicago, awarding a staggering $10,000,000 to plaintiffs for conduct committed by someone else.”Boujean then alleged that Kelly’s race played a role in his money being stripped so freely from him.
She added, “A pattern has emerged from courts across the country deciding that Mr. Kelly is not entitled to the same Due Process rights as everyone else. It’s getting old. No court would have been that cavalier with the money of a white man. Our appeal is pending on this issue.”
The singer remains in federal prison in North Carolina. He continues to serve his two sentences concurrently for charges of sex trafficking, child pornography, and racketeering, among others.
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