R. Kelly Pleads Not Guilty To Sexual Abuse Charges

Embattled singer, R. Kelly who is facing 10 counts of sexual abuse charges has appeared in Cook County court today.

The singer’s lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf regarding 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

According to court documents, there are four alleged victims, with nine of Kelly’s counts involving alleged victims ranging in age from 13 to 16. In the state of Illinois, the charge of criminal sexual abuse is a class 2 felony, with each charge carrying a maximum of three to seven years in prison sentence.

Celebrity gossip site, TMZ had reported early last Friday that two women had testified before a grand jury in Chicago, alleging that Kelly had sex with minors, with one of the women reportedly turning over physical evidence. According to the outlet, one of the alleged victims testified that she was underage when she had sex with Kelly between the years 2008 to 2010 in the state of Illinois.

Following the news that Kelly had been charged broke, attorney Michael Avenatti tweeted,

“It’s over.”

“After 25 years of serial sexual abuse and assault of underage girls, the day of reckoning for R Kelly has arrived,” he wrote in a second tweet.

Avenatti who also spoke with NBC News in a statement said,

“After 10 months of work and providing significant evidence to Kim Foxx and her staff, we are elated that justice will be done in this case. As a father of two teenage daughters, this is especially gratifying on a personal level.”

Kelly getting charged is coming on the heels of the release of Lifetime’s docu-series on Kelly, which shared allegations of misconduct against the 52-year-old.