Statute of Limitations-Sentencing Guidelines

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: United States of America v. Robert Kelly

Case No.: 23-1449

Officials: Sykes, Chief Judge, and Ripple and St. Eve, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Statute of Limitations-Sentencing Guidelines

Kelly, a music industry professional was accused of sexually abusing underage girls in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The victims, referred to as Jane, Pauline, and Nia, were introduced to Kelly through various connections. The abuse, which included explicit phone calls, oral sex, and intercourse, was often recorded by Kelly. The victims’ testimonies, along with three videos of Jane and Kelly, were presented as evidence during the trial.

Prior to this case, Kelly had been acquitted in a 2008 criminal trial for similar conduct involving different victims. In 2019, federal prosecutors secured an indictment against Kelly, which included 13 counts of producing and receiving child pornography, inducing minors to engage in sexual activities, and obstructing justice in the state case. The jury convicted Kelly on six counts, including inducing Jane, Pauline, and Nia to engage in sexual activities, and three child pornography production counts corresponding to the three videos in evidence. The jury acquitted Kelly on the other seven counts.

In the Seventh Circuit, Kelly raised three arguments: a statute of limitations defense, a request for severance of his trial, and a challenge to his sentence. The court rejected all three arguments. It ruled that the current statute of limitations for sex crimes against children, which extends through the life of the victim, applied to Kelly’s case. The court also found no error in the district court’s decision to conduct a single trial on all charges against Kelly. The court affirmed Kelly’s sentence, which was calculated based on the Guidelines range in place at the time of his offenses, and varied upwards to 240 months considering the nature of his crimes and his history.

Affirmed

Decided 04/26/24

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