R. Kelly is out of solitary confinement after a federal internal review of his behavior, per Complex.
The “I Believe I Can Fly” singer was secluded for two weeks in solitary confirment after a routine inspection of his cell took an unexpected turn. At his North Carolina facility last month, guards discovered a notebook with a retired warden’s phone number. The discovery set off an internal investigation and resulted in R. Kelly being moved into the Special Housing Unit at the Federal Correctional Complex.
His attorney issues a statement
Speaking of R. Kelly’s release from the solitary confinement and his subsequent return to the prison now, his lawyer, Beau Brindley told the Los Angeles Magazine, “Mr. Kelly has been released from special housing.” He added, “No impropriety whatsoever was found with respect to his possession of the telephone number of a former prison official.”
“He was kept in special housing for approximately two weeks without legitimate cause before the facility was compelled to release him,” Brindley said.
Brindley insisted tat the retired official had an entirely benign connection to R. Kelly, describing the person as someone who had taken on a mentorship role.
However, Dr. DeWayne Hendrix, who previously served as associate warden at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, explained that prisons often scrutinize when an inmate has contact information for current or former staff. “Under BOP standards of employee conduct, staff are prohibited from showing partiality toward or becoming personally involved with inmates or former inmates.”
A photo has since surfaced of 59-year-old Kelly posing with another inmate.
The disgraced singer is serving a 30-year sentence after being convicted of racketeering and sex crimes in New York and Illinois in 2021 and 2023, respectively. According to LA Magazine, the federal prison records list his projected release date as December 2046.