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R. Kelly escaped child pornography charges in Florida when prosecutors announced Wednesday they were dropping all 12 counts against the top-selling R&B singer.
The decision followed a judge's ruling last week that detectives illegally seized photographs allegedly showing the singer having sex with an underage girl, meaning they could not be used against him.
Prosecutors decided not to appeal the ruling by Circuit Judge Dennis Maloney, choosing instead to abandon the charges.
"These pictures that were found in Mr. Kelly's possession have been suppressed by the court, and the state cannot prove this case without the evidence," prosecutor Bradford H. Copley wrote in the Wednesday court filing.
The 37-year-old Kelly — whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly — still faces 14 child pornography charges in Chicago and has pleaded innocent. Those charges were not affected by the ending of the case in Polk County, which is just east of Tampa.
Last month, seven of the original 21 child pornography charges against Kelly in Chicago were dismissed.
"My faith in the system of justice has never wavered, and with this victory behind me, I look forward to clearing my name in Illinois," Kelly said in a statement. "As I've said before, I am confident that when all the facts come out, people will see that I'm no criminal."
After a hearing Thursday, Maloney agreed with the singer's attorneys that Polk County sheriff's detectives did not have enough evidence to legally justify a search of Kelly's Davenport home when the deputies asked a judge for a warrant in June 2002.
The photographs were on a digital camera that was wrapped in a towel inside a duffel bag.
Deputies had earlier found marijuana in a home Kelly rented for three business associates. They then sought a warrant to search the house where Kelly was staying nearby to look for drugs.
During an initial search for drugs, detective Robert Mateo said he observed video cameras and an "unusual" amount of adult pornography in a cabinet in a room marked "Private." The detective then sought a second search warrant to look for child pornography.
The next day, Mateo was granted the warrant by Polk Circuit Court Judge Mary Catherine Green. Mateo returned to Kelly's home and wrote in a report that he examined one of the video cameras and scanned the images, finding several pictures of two women performing sex acts and other photos of Kelly in a sex act.
Kelly's attorneys said the affidavit Mateo submitted in seeking the warrant wasn't adequate because it was based on unspecified information from Chicago authorities and no link was established between the discovery of marijuana and the presence of cameras and child pornography.
Kelly's Chicago-based attorney, Ed Genson, did not immediately return a phone message Wednesday.
Kelly, whose first name is Robert, is a best-selling singer, songwriter and producer who has worked with artists ranging from Britney Spears to Michael Jackson . His hits range from the sexually charged hit "Ignition," to the sentimental "Step in the Name of Love," and the inspirational hit "I Believe I Can Fly."
Since his arrest on child pornography charges, he has released two albums — "Chocolate Factory," which has sold 2.5 million copies, and a greatest hits collection that has sold over 1 million. A new album is due in May.
Source: AP
The decision followed a judge's ruling last week that detectives illegally seized photographs allegedly showing the singer having sex with an underage girl, meaning they could not be used against him.
Prosecutors decided not to appeal the ruling by Circuit Judge Dennis Maloney, choosing instead to abandon the charges.
"These pictures that were found in Mr. Kelly's possession have been suppressed by the court, and the state cannot prove this case without the evidence," prosecutor Bradford H. Copley wrote in the Wednesday court filing.
The 37-year-old Kelly — whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly — still faces 14 child pornography charges in Chicago and has pleaded innocent. Those charges were not affected by the ending of the case in Polk County, which is just east of Tampa.
Last month, seven of the original 21 child pornography charges against Kelly in Chicago were dismissed.
"My faith in the system of justice has never wavered, and with this victory behind me, I look forward to clearing my name in Illinois," Kelly said in a statement. "As I've said before, I am confident that when all the facts come out, people will see that I'm no criminal."
After a hearing Thursday, Maloney agreed with the singer's attorneys that Polk County sheriff's detectives did not have enough evidence to legally justify a search of Kelly's Davenport home when the deputies asked a judge for a warrant in June 2002.
The photographs were on a digital camera that was wrapped in a towel inside a duffel bag.
Deputies had earlier found marijuana in a home Kelly rented for three business associates. They then sought a warrant to search the house where Kelly was staying nearby to look for drugs.
During an initial search for drugs, detective Robert Mateo said he observed video cameras and an "unusual" amount of adult pornography in a cabinet in a room marked "Private." The detective then sought a second search warrant to look for child pornography.
The next day, Mateo was granted the warrant by Polk Circuit Court Judge Mary Catherine Green. Mateo returned to Kelly's home and wrote in a report that he examined one of the video cameras and scanned the images, finding several pictures of two women performing sex acts and other photos of Kelly in a sex act.
Kelly's attorneys said the affidavit Mateo submitted in seeking the warrant wasn't adequate because it was based on unspecified information from Chicago authorities and no link was established between the discovery of marijuana and the presence of cameras and child pornography.
Kelly's Chicago-based attorney, Ed Genson, did not immediately return a phone message Wednesday.
Kelly, whose first name is Robert, is a best-selling singer, songwriter and producer who has worked with artists ranging from Britney Spears to Michael Jackson . His hits range from the sexually charged hit "Ignition," to the sentimental "Step in the Name of Love," and the inspirational hit "I Believe I Can Fly."
Since his arrest on child pornography charges, he has released two albums — "Chocolate Factory," which has sold 2.5 million copies, and a greatest hits collection that has sold over 1 million. A new album is due in May.
Source: AP