R. Kelly Appeals to Trump for Commutation of 31-Year Prison Sentence

R. Kelly Appeals to Trump for Commutation of 31-Year Prison Sentence

American R&B singer R. Kelly, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, has formally appealed to United States President Donald Trump to commute his 31-year prison sentence for racketeering, sex trafficking and child sexual abuse-related offences.

According to court records made public this week by the Office of the Pardon Attorney, Kelly submitted a request for executive clemency through the US Department of Justice.

The application, which is still pending, seeks a commutation of his sentence rather than a full presidential pardon.

Kelly, 59, was convicted in 2021 of racketeering after prosecutors accused him of leading a criminal enterprise that recruited women and underage girls for illegal sexual activities and the production of pornography. He was subsequently sentenced to 30 years in prison.

In 2022, he was convicted in a separate case on three counts relating to child sexual abuse material and three counts of child enticement. He received an additional 20-year sentence, with most of the term running concurrently with his earlier sentence, resulting in a combined prison term of 31 years.

Kelly is currently serving his sentence at a federal prison in North Carolina and is not eligible for release until January 2046.

His lawyer, Beau Brindley, has reportedly been lobbying President Trump for more than a year to grant the singer clemency.

Last year, Brindley filed an emergency application seeking Kelly’s release to home detention, alleging that the singer’s life was at risk and claiming that prison officials were involved in a plot to have him killed by another inmate. The court, however, dismissed the application.

Kelly has consistently denied the allegations against him.

R. Kelly Appeals to Trump for Commutation of 31-Year Prison Sentence