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 Lawyer Douglas Anton made the claim in a filing in Brooklyn
federal court, ahead of Kelly's scheduled Friday court
appearance. Kelly has pleaded not guilty.
New York prosecutors have charged Kelly with running a criminal
racketeering enterprise in which he sexually trafficked and
exploited minors. An indictment against Kelly refers to five
alleged victims of the scheme, who are not named.
Anton said in Wednesday's filing that the charge was "an
absurdity," and that the women with whom Kelly had sex were
"dying to be with him."
"If this was the 'pattern' or 'enterprise' the government seeks
to make it out to be, (it) is five disgruntled groupies, not all
of which are alleged to be under age, who now show groupie
remorse so many years later," he wrote.
Prosecutors have said Kelly set strict rules for his sexual
partners, requiring them to get his permission to eat or go to
the bathroom. Anton said these rules were intended for their
protection, to ensure "the safest, most enjoyable fan
experience."
Anton asked that Kelly be granted bail on the New York charges
at Friday's hearing, though he acknowledged that Kelly will
remain jailed no matter what since he was denied bail on Chicago
federal charges.
Gloria Allred, a lawyer representing three of the alleged
victims in the New York case, called Anton's filing "unusual."
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"Whether he intended to or not, he's now given the prosecution a
preview of what his defense may be," she said. "If that's all
he's got, I think he's going to have major challenges in this
case."
Kelly, 52, is charged in Brooklyn with racketeering and violation of
a federal human trafficking law. The Brooklyn prosecutors say Kelly
and his entourage would invite women and girls backstage after
concerts, isolate them from friends and family, and make them
dependent on him for their financial well-being.
Kelly also faces 13 federal criminal counts in Chicago, including
child pornography and obstruction of justice. The Chicago
prosecutors charged in their 13-count indictment that Kelly had
sexual contact with five minors, recorded videos of some of them and
paid them off to buy their silence.
In a third case, pending in Cook County, Illinois, state court, he
is accused of abusing a girl between the ages of 13 and 16, between
May 2009 and January 2010. He has pleaded not guilty to those
charges as well.
(Reporting by Brendan Pierson in New York; Editing by Howard Goller
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