Man testifies against R. Kelly
NEW YORK — After several days of testimony from women claiming they were groomed and sexually abused by R. Kelly, a man took the witness stand at Kelly’s federal sex-trafficking trial in New York City on Monday to say the R&B star exploited him.
The witness, testifying in Brooklyn without using his real name, told a jury how Kelly lured him to his Chicago-area home in 2007 when he was in high school with false offers of helping him with his music career.
Kelly asked the alleged victim, then 17, “what I was willing to do for music,” the witness said. He replied, “I’ll carry your bags. … Anything you need, I’ll be willing to do.”
“That’s not it. That’s not it,” he said Kelly responded before asking him if he ever fantasized about having sex with men. He described how Kelly then “proceeded to give me oral sex,” even though, “I wasn’t into it.”
The witness was testifying as part of an agreement stemming from his guilty plea in a separate case alleging he was part of a botched scheme to bribe a woman to not testify against Kelly. Kelly, 54, has denied accusations that he preyed on victims.
Power out for all of New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS — Rescuers in boats, helicopters and high-water trucks brought hundreds of people trapped by Hurricane Ida’s floodwaters to safety Monday. More than 1 million homes and businesses in Louisiana and Mississippi — including all of New Orleans — were left without power. The storm was blamed for at least two deaths.
Joseph P. Kennedy II rips Sirhan ruling
BOSTON — Former Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II, son of Robert F. Kennedy, denounced the decision to grant parole to Sirhan Sirhan, convicted of killing RFK, as a “grievous error.” The move by a two-person panel to grant parole goes to the full parole board and later could still be blocked by California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Newsom’s office issued a statement Monday saying he can’t comment until it is before him “without compromising the legal validity of his decision.”
Two of RFK’s children, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Douglas Kennedy, said they back paroling Sirhan. Six others, including Chris Kennedy, who ran for Illinois governor in 2018, signed a letter opposing parole for Sirhan.