White House responds to R Kelly’s appeal over prison sentence
The White House has responded after R Kelly asked Donald Trump to commute his prison sentence.
Earlier this week, it was revealed that the disgraced R&B singer had made a formal request to the US president.
The Department of Justice’s Office of the Pardon Attorney made the appeal public, with Kelly hoping to secure a reduction on his 30-year prison sentence.
Following the request, a White House official shared a statement with Rolling Stone, stating Kelly’s plea was a “random submission” rather than any special treatment.
“This appears to be a random submission through the public portal which anyone can submit an application through,” they wrote. “The submission of a pardon request should not be interpreted to mean anything other than an individual has chosen to submit a request.”
They continued, “The team that reviews clemency requests at the White House is not tracking this request at this time. The White House has a thorough review process for all clemency requests, with the President being the ultimate decider.”
Kelly is serving time in North Carolina after being convicted of racketeering, sexual exploitation of a child, bribery, coercion, sex trafficking, and violating the Mann Act.
Last year, his lawyer, Beau Brindley, said, “R Kelly’s life is now threatened, because of his willingness to fight and to expose the very kind of corruption that President Trump has been fighting and standing up to since the day he took that office. We will ask President Trump to help us.”
He continued, “We are seeking a conversation with the president, because R Kelly does not have the time, with his life in danger, to go through the normal channels. We are seeking talks with the White House. We are seeking talks with everybody who is willing to help us.”