R. Kelly witness reacts to verdict: "I Was Heartbroken"
Skee OuiZy
R. Kelly witness reacts to verdict
'I WAS HEARTBROKEN' | Childhood friend who testified girl was on tape finds news hard to take
Raven Gengler's mom had been sitting by the phone at her Oak Park home, waiting for hours.
But when the headline appeared on the TV screen Friday afternoon, she called her daughter with the news they had dreaded for six years.
(Scott Stewart/Sun-Times, Courtesy)
R&B superstar R. Kelly -- accused of videotaping himself having sex with and urinating on Gengler's childhood, underage friend -- had been cleared of all 14 counts of child pornography.
"I was heartbroken," Raven Gengler said.
As Kelly, 41, walked past a crowd of screaming fans on the steps of the Cook County Criminal Courthouse and back to a life of wealth and freedom, dozens of similar phone calls were being made to those involved in the case.
But the news came hardest for those like Gengler, Stephanie "Sparkle" Edwards and her brother Bennie Edwards, who lost some of their best friends when they agreed to testify against the Grammy Award winner.
Raven Gengler, one of four close friends who grew up with the alleged victim in the west suburbs in the late 1990s and identified her and Kelly on the tape in court, said Saturday she was coming to terms with the verdict.
Though she and 14 other witnesses said the alleged victim was the "13- or 14-year-old" girl on the notorious 27-minute sex tape at the center of the case, the jurors in the end said they couldn't be sure.
The alleged victim refused to testify, and told a grand jury she was not the girl on the tape, putting friends and family members who believed it was her in a difficult position.
"I still love her, and even though she said it wasn't her, I came forward out of love," Gengler said, adding that she was still "sure" it was her friend and Kelly on the tape.
Like many other family members and friends of the alleged victim, Gengler was cut off by her former basketball buddy when she agreed to testify for the state six years ago.
"We haven't spoken since this whole thing came about," Gengler said. "I was absolutely sure it was her and R. Kelly on that tape, so it's upsetting to see how the justice system works."
"I'm sure his fame played a role, but when it's a close friend it really hits home," she added. "I want the best for her."
Tjada Burnett, a family friend of the alleged victim who also testified against Kelly, said she "can't understand" the verdict.
Burnett said she had spoken Friday night with Sparkle, the alleged victim's aunt who introduced her to Kelly when she was just 12.
Sparkle "was very, very upset," Burnett said.
Bennie Edwards Sr., the alleged victim's uncle, who also testified for the state, described Kelly's acquittal as "B.S."
"How can the jury let a pedophile go like that?" he asked.
Though he too is estranged from his niece, he said: "She's gotta be hurting right now."
Kelly, he predicted, will "get what he's got coming."
Kelly, who has always maintained his innocence, broke down in tears when the verdict was read Friday afternoon, saying "Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus."
He did not speak to the media Friday and had no immediate plans to do so, a Kelly spokesman said on Saturday.
The star can now look forward to the release of his new album in August, instead of life in a prison cell.
"It's over," said juror Peter Gazis, 39, of Palatine. "I hope they burn that tape. I feel sorry for everyone subjected to it."
According to jurors, Kelly was never in any real danger of being found guilty, though at one point five of the 12 jurors wanted to convict him.
One juror said he was concerned that after the alleged victim's family first saw the video, they reached out to a lawyer, not police. And jurors couldn't get past the fact that the alleged victim, now 23, refused to testify.
Cook County State's Attorney Richard Devine wouldn't say whether the verdict surprised him.
"Twelve people sit in that room and they make their decision, and whether we're surprised ... it's our obligation to accept it," Devine said.
Lead prosecutor Shauna Boliker said the alleged victim's refusal to testify "absolutely did play a part" in the outcome. But she said she did not want to "re-victimize" the girl by forcing her on the stand.
Devine said he hopes the trial has shone a spotlight on the cruel world of child pornography.
"If we see material like this, we're gonna bring that prosecution -- we'll bring it tomorrow," he said. "Nobody, should sit out there and say, 'Oh gosh, this is free territory for us now.' "
Contributing: Mike Thomas, Kara Spak and Frank Main