R Kelly's lawyers demand copy of video being used as evidence in sex abuse case
Disgraced rapper R.Kelly appeared in court on Tuesday in Chicago and his lawyers continued to turn the heat on the prosecutors to share the potential evidence that proves their client's guilt. Kelly's team said that they were still waiting for the tape that allegedly shows the rapper sexually assaulting an underage girl and would like to review it.
Steve Greenberg, Kelly's lawyer told CBS Chicago, "The state has the tape. I can’t get it from them. They have to produce it. They have an obligation to produce it. Maybe the squirrels are working slowly." According to reports, he was joined by "at least five more attorneys" during the Tuesday morning hearing.
Prosecutors, however, said that they are still copying the tape. Greenberg is also reportedly trying to "preserve all emails, text messages and other communications" between Cook County State Attorney Kim Foxx‘s office and attorney Michael Avenatti, who is repping the accuser. Greenberg says he considers Avenatti a witness in the Kelly case, and not an attorney, in explaining why he thinks he’s entitled to the communications. The prosecutors also said they are looking for the Chicago Public Schools records of one of the victims in the case and they handed over financial records that reportedly ties Kelly and two of his accusers to settlement money. Greenberg called these records to be an "extortion efforts".
The judge has asked Kelly's lawyers to be "specific" about what "hope to gain from that for the defense of Mr. Kelly" through the communications. "it had a lot of generalities," Judge Lawrence Flood, said.
The defense has said that it will file the motion again.
Kelly is accused of sexually abusing three underage girls and one woman. The next court date in the case is June 26 for his criminal case but he is expected to make an appearance Wednesday for a child support hearing. In April, he lost another civil case by default when he failed to make an appearance in court. The lawsuit accused him of sexual abuse of a teenager. The accused had claimed that the rapper had abused her sexually back in 1998 when she was 16 years old.
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