R. Kelly's former business manager Derrel McDavid, one of the singer's two co-defendants in his federal trial in Chicago, took the stand in his own defense on Wednesday, as the trial nears an end.
He recounted their evolving relationship over the years, as Kelly's behavior changed with his stardom. McDavid also recalled the very first suit ever filed against Kelly. "He was flying a lot of women in and out of town, putting a lot of women up in hotels," McDavid said, adding that they were all grown, adult women.
McDavid also testified that the attorney who filed those suits, Susan Loggans, advertised to those who wanted to sue kelly, saying it shaped his skeptical view of allegations against the singer. Kelly's defense attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, has asked the judge in the case to bar certain testimony she argues would unfairly prejudice the jury against her client – including anything related to Kelly's marriage to 15-year-old singer Aaliyah; anything related to Kelly receiving injections or other treatment to"curb his sexual appetite"; anything regarding lawsuits or settlements of sexual misconduct claims involving other Kelly accusers; anything relating to Kelly's...
Before testimony resumed in the trial on Wednesday, Leinenweber granted a motion from attorneys for longtime music critic Jim DeRogatis to quash a subpoena from McDavid's attorneys calling on him to testify about a videotape sent to DeRogatis at the Chicago Sun-Times in the early 2000s, allegedly showing Kelly having sex with a then 14-year-old girl.
Leinenweber said DeRogatis did not need to testify after McDavid's attorneys said they only wanted to ask him whether the video he received and gave to police was the same one in evidence at Kelly's trial. The judge said that testimony would not serve any purpose.Former Kelly business manager Derrel McDavid testifies about doubts of sex abuse claims against singer
As Kelly rose to music superstardom, McDavid said his work for the singer also grew, saying Kelly went from not having much money to having nearly $1 million after his first album went platinum. Asked how his own duties changed as Kelly's career took off, McDavid said,"More money, more problems." McDavid recalled Kelly eventually started flying women to see him, and putting them up in hotels. He also testified all of those women were adults, when asked if he was referring to teenage girls.
McDavid testified he believes there was another incident at a concert in Philadelphia, and that's when Kelly told him to call his lawyer, Gerry Margolis, to fire Hankerson. "I would think that if you were going to claim someone had sex with you when you were a minor, you would go to the police," he testified.
McDavid testified Hawkins' attorney, Susan Loggans, asked Margolis what she could get, first demanding $10 million, but agreeing to a $250,000 settlement. Compared to what Kelly was making at the time, McDavid said that settlement was relatively insignificant. McDavid attorney Beau Brindley also brought up other occasions in which he claimed women were coached to say they had sexual contact with Kelly before she turned 18 so as to win a settlement.
He also said if the allegations of improper conduct between Kelly and Jane were true, he was sure police would have come to Kelly and his team – and they did not.