Derrel McDavid, R. Kelly’s former business manager, took the position of defense on Wednesday. He faces four federal indictments against him, two counts of him receiving child pornography, one count of conspiracy to receive child pornography, and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Prior to the Cook County child pornography trial in 2008, McDavid conspired with Kelly and Kelly’s former assistant, Milton “June” Brown, to accuse Kelly of sexually abusing girls. Kelly has been accused of covering up a sex tape that showed him having sex, resulting in Kelly’s acquittal.
McDavid, who was hired as Kelly’s accountant in the 1990s, said he first met Kelly early in his career as a singer. said he had not heard, telling jurors Kelly seemed disappointed.
McDavid explained that when Kelly first met him, he was a shy, introverted and humble child.
“He was just trying to get into the music business and make it,” McDavid testified.
McDavid said his singing career grew as Kelly rose to music superstardom. He said he was close.
McDavid first became aware of Kelly’s potential to become a superstar while traveling in Georgia with his wife and sons when his wife was playing country music on the radio. I noticed McDavid glanced at his wife and said, “He seems to have succeeded.”
McDavid describes Kelly as a “self-contained” artist, and Kelly was one of the most prolific songwriters of the time, writing lyrics, composing music, composing melodies, playing instruments, He testified that he was able to produce music.
Eventually, McDavid became Kelly’s business manager, handling all of his financial and business transactions, including writing checks, paying bills, buying cars, and handling insurance. McDavid testified that he didn’t want Kelly to be involved in the expense at all and expected him to handle everything.
Asked how his own duties have changed as Kelly’s career took off, McDavid said, “More money, more problems.”
McDavid said that Kelly’s tour was the most expensive part of his career and that it was his job to keep profits for Kelly, leading to a fight over tour costs, which jurors Kelly said ” I always wanted everything,” he said.
During that time, their business relationship developed into a friendship, and McDavid at one point told a jury that he considered Kelly his son.
According to McDavid, Kelly was shy when he first met women, but as he became a superstar he gained more attention from them and began to act like most superstars, doing everything he wanted. I requested it to be obtained.
McDavid recalled that Kelly eventually started flying women to meet him, taking them to a hotel. When asked if he was referring to teenage girls, he also testified that those women were all adults.
McDavid also described the friction that grew between Kelly and his former manager, Barry Hankerson, as Kelly became more and more successful. McDavid testified that the more successful Kelly was, the more time and attention he needed, while also pointing out that Hankerson became more dominant, showing up at the studio with a bodyguard as a method of intimidation. did.
As the friction between Kelly and Hankerson grew, McDavid testified that Hankerson’s role with Kelly decreased and his own role increased.
McDavid describes an incident in a Los Angeles chicken coop in 1999, in which Hankerson entered with a bodyguard and knocked over the lunch table, causing a fight with Kelly that further strained their relationship. said.
McDavid testified that he believed there was another incident at a concert in Philadelphia, and Kelly called his attorney, Jerry Margolis, and told him to fire Hankerson.
Turning to the first lawsuit Kelly faced, McDavid said he learned that Tiffany Hawkins filed a paternity lawsuit against Kelly in 1997.
McDavid testified that he learned of the allegations through Margolis, and testified during a conference call with Kelly and Margolis that Kelly told them “no way” and that he would undergo a paternity test to prove he was not the father. did.
McDavid testified that the paternity case was later dropped, but Hawkins sued Kelly for having sex with her when she was a minor. He said he didn’t believe anything she said.
“If you were going to claim that someone had sex with you when you were underage, you would think you would go to the police,” he testified.
McDavid tells Margolis that he believes Hawkins will sue Kelly to get money from him, and Margolis says such things are common and almost “the cost of doing business” as a celebrity. Told.
Margolis told him they would still pay the settlement, although she believed Kelly would be “vindicated”, but McDavid testified that the decision was confusing. explained that even that kind of hoax could hurt Kelly and wasn’t worth fighting in public.
McDavid also recalled attending Hawkins’ deposition during that lawsuit, claiming that seven hours later Margolis proved she was lying. He said it was clear Hawkins was “just someone trying to make money”.
McDavid testified that Hawkins’ attorney, Susan Loggans, asked Margolis what he could get and initially demanded $10 million, but agreed to a $250,000 settlement. McDavid said the settlement was relatively unimportant compared to what Kelly was making at the time.
McDavid told jurors that Hawkins’ lawsuit had influenced the way they viewed those kinds of cases, and Margolis told what it would be like if the star were successful.
After that incident, McDavid alleged that Logan’s later filed a series of “cookie cutter” lawsuits against Kelly on behalf of other women, making allegations similar to the Hawkins lawsuit, telling jurors how similar they were. He testified that he doubted the truth because of the fact that he had been
McDavid recalled that Loggans put up signs and TV commercials calling on women to “call me if you want to sue R. Kelly.” He testified that those efforts discredited Logans in his eyes.
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