In a desperate last-ditch effort to have R. Kelly acquitted, one of his attorneys compared the singer to civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during his ongoing trial.
On Thursday, defense attorney Devereaux Cannick faced the jury in Kelly’s sex-trafficking case. He quoted the pastor and prolific activist’s “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech, reminding jurors that MLK protested against the U.S. for how they mistreated African-Americans.
“Somewhere, I read of the freedom of speech. Somewhere I read of the freedom of assembly. Somewhere, I read of the freedom of the press,” Cannick quoted King, who then said that the leader was simply trying to make the government “be true to what’s on paper.” The defense lawyer claims that Kelly was trying to do the same thing.
Cannick maintained that Kelly’s relationships with his accusers were always consensual and marked by lavish gifts and other luxuries throughout the trial. While he has acknowledged that Kelly had multiple women at a time, he says that the singer “treated them like gold.”
The 54-year-old disgraced star has been accused of sexually abusing over 20 women and teenagers spanning over two decades. The “Honey Love” vocalist has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
