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Jun 25, 2008 4:53 pm US/Central
'R. Kelly Should Have Bailed Me Out'
Debra Triplett Was Released From Jail After Shouting At Jurors To 'Free R. Kelly!' During R&B Superstar's Trial
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Debra Triplett spent 34 days in jail after shouting, "Free R. Kelly!" at the jurors in the R&B superstar's child pornography trial.
CBS
A grandmother of six is finally free today after spending more than a month in jail for being one of R. Kelly's biggest fans.
CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker reports that Debra Triplett is on her way home to her grandchildren.
"I want to see my family," Triplett said. "I'm coming home y'all."
The West Side woman was sent to jail on day four of the singer's trial for yelling "Free R. Kelly!" within earshot of jurors as they were getting off an elevator on their way to a courtroom for Kelly's child pornography trial.
Jurors acquitted the R&B star of child pornography this month. He'd been free on bond since 2002.
But Triplett spent 34 days behind bars for uttering three little words.
"I was like, 'Free R. Kelly,'" Triplett said.
Triplett happened to be in the courthouse to attend a hearing for her oldest son when she found out Kelly was in the same building. All she wanted was to catch a glimpse of her favorite singer, but instead she ended up in Judge Vincent Gaughan's courtroom. She got a lecture for making a statement that might influence the jury and was charged with contempt of court.
"I was really mad about that," Triplett said. "If I had known I was going to get locked up, I would have never said that, because I was just being a fan."
The lockup came with a $50,000 bond. Triplett's family needed $5,000 to get her out.
"I knew I couldn't raise that kind of money," Triplett's husband said. "I asked a few friends - they said they didn't have that kind of money."
"I was thinking, 'Who's got that kind of money?'", Triplett said. "R. Kelly, he should have bailed me out."
But that didn't happen. The 48-year-old grandmother remained in jail until this morning when she apologized in court. The judge accepted her apology - noting that she could have ended up depriving Kelly or the state of a fair trial - and sent her home.
Believe it or not, R. Kelly is still her favorite.
When asked if she was still a fan of the singer, Triplett said, "Yeah, 'cause he didn't do it. I just said something out of my mouth. He didn't know it was going to get me in trouble."
Kelly's attorney says the singer did feel sorry for the woman, but he was advised not to bail her out because it wouldn't look right for him to support a woman who attempted to influence his jury.
CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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