R Kelly is currently awaiting trial for an upcoming federal sex trafficking case and has been hit with another blow as his two lead attorney’s for the case have asked to be withdrawn.
WLS-TV reports that attorneys Steven Greenberg and Michael Leonard have filed documents to withdraw from the case which have now been approved. It’s a significant development in the case against Kelly.
“Our reasons for withdrawal are significant and it is impossible, in our belief, for us to be able to continue to properly represent Mr. Kelly under the current circumstances,” Greenberg wrote in a letter to U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly. The Chicago-based attorneys also confirmed they “are willing to (serve) as effective stand-by counsel” if the court desires.
Many people believe that the cause for the withdrawal comes from Greenberg and Leonard amid heated disagreements with the other members of Kelly’s legal team.
“We refused to try a case with lawyers who don’t have the appropriate level of experience and skill because that is not in the client’s best interest,” the two attorneys told TMZ via a statement. “It is a shame that lawyers can’t suppress their own egos or self interest and do or act in the client’s best interest.”
The trial is scheduled to begin on August 9 in New York and sees Kelly facings charges of sexual exploitation of a child, racketeering, forced labour, kidnapping, enticement and bribery. Kelly will also face sexual abuse charges in Chicago and has been awaiting trial at Metropolitan Correctional Center.
