Dec 19, 2007 6:09 pm US/Central
Judge Issues Warrant For R. Kelly's Arrest
Judge Was To Hear Testimony On Vein Patterns That Would Allegedly Prove That Kelly Was Man In Sex Tape
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
R & B superstar R. Kelly missed a court date in his child pornography case Wednesday after his tour bus was stopped by Utah state police.
UPDATE: R. Kelly Comes To Court, Avoids Arrest
Judge Vincent Gaughan, presiding over the case, entered a warrant for Kelly's arrest. But he held off on putting it into effect until Thursday, when Gaughan ordered Kelly to appear before him at 9 a.m.
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"This is just an abuse of the process. It's disrespectful of your honor," said Assistant State's Attorney Shauna Bolicker.
CBS 2 legal analyst Irv Miller says Kelly did not receive preferential treatment, and nothing unusual took place.
"When a lawyer shows up and the defendant doesn't, the judge is going to accept that reasoning and the bottom line is that you want the defendant to show up to court," Miller said.
Kelly, 40, is charged with child pornography for allegedly videotaping himself having sex with a girl estimated to be 13 or 14. He has pleaded not guilty in the case, which has been pending since 2002.
One of R. Kelly's defense lawyers, Ed Genson, said Kelly had performed a concert in Sacramento and was "detained because of some snow."
According to the Salt Lake Tribune the bus was traveling at 101 miles per hour.
State police pulled over Kelly's tour bus in Green River, Utah, to check the bus' log, Genson said. The log details how long a particular driver has been driving a bus. The police ordered Kelly's bus to stop for eight hours because the log had not been properly filled out, Genson said.
The bus went to the nearest motel. "We had a lawyer down there. We cut the eight hours down to three or four," Genson said.
Genson assured Gaughan that Kelly had made every effort to make it to court on time. "Mr. Kelly is presently about two hours away from the courtroom," Genson said.
A representative from Cook County pretrial services said Kelly has been complying with the rules governing his travel.
Gaughan told Bolicker, "I don't take this lightly, either," and entered the warrant on Kelly. However, he continued the warrant until Thursday's court appearance.
Gaughan also said he would set a trial date Thursday for the case.
The judge was to hear testimony Wednesday about veins.
"They have an expert to say that the vein patterns on the video are identical to the vein patterns on R. Kelly so they are going to identify him through the vein patterns," Miller said.
Miller says that particular science has never been used in an Illinois case, but since Kelly denies he is the man captured on tape, the prosecution is expected to use every possible tool to try to prove it is him.
CBS 2's Katie McCall and the STNG Wire contributed to this report.
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