Judge set aside default judgment against R. Kelly because lawyer says he can’t read
R. Kelly judgment withdrawn after lawyers say he can't read.
A Chicago judge had to roll back the decision to award a woman a default judgment against R. Kelly because the singer’s lawyer has stated that he was unable to read the lawsuit.
The woman is also one of the accusers named in the lawsuit that resulted in Kelly’s arrest in February on a 10-count sexual abuse charge. The woman filed the civil case a day before the Cook County prosecutors charged the disgraced R&B singer.
—Grand Jury to hear compelling evidence on R. Kelly sex trafficking allegations—
On Wednesday, Cook County Judge Moira Johnson reinstated the lawsuit alleging that Kelly is illiterate and that’s why he didn’t respond to his lawsuit when serve, according to The Chicago Sun-Times.
Kelly did not respond nor did he show up for the civil hearing, which prompted the judge Johnson to enter the default judgment in the woman’s favor, according to court records.
Three other women are also named in the suit, who all allege that Kelly had sex with them as minors, said the woman’s lawyer, Jeffrey Deutschman. The woman is identified as “HW” in criminal court filings.
The embattled R&B singer has been dogged by allegations of sexual abuse of underage girls for years.
Nine of the ten counts against Kelly, 52, involve alleged victims who at least age 13 but no older than 17 years old the 36-pages indictment says. In the indictment, there are four alleged victims. One of which is linked to three different counts. The incidents occurred on separate occasions between 1998 and 2010. In the State of Illinois, the statute of limitations on sexual abuse against minors can extend as long as 20 years.
—R. Kelly pays $62K in back child support for the last three months—
According to reports, as many as a dozen accusers have come forward with accusations against the singer.
