R. Kelly defense tries to discredit witnesses who identify girl in tape
They met the summer before fourth grade, and Simha Jamison said she and the girl now at the center of the R. Kelly child pornography trial were inseparable while growing up in Oak Park.
So when rumors spread in town that her pal was in a sex tape with the R&B star, Jamison watched a bootleg copy at another friend's house.
"I thought she looked just like my best friend," the 24-year-old Chicago hair stylist testified Wednesday while describing her shock. "I kind of know her like the back of my hand."
Kelly, 41, is accused of filming himself having sex with a girl, as young as 13, up to one decade ago in his former home on Chicago's North Side. His defense team denies it's Kelly and the girl -- a niece of the singer's former protégé. The girl, now 23, also says it is not her. Neither she nor her parents are cooperating with the prosecution.
So, to bolster their case, prosecutors presented four witnesses Wednesday who identified the girl and hit maker on the infamous tape. Her uncle and his former wife said they recognized the two while viewing the tape in December 2001, with other relatives, none of whom went to police to seek justice.
In terse cross examinations, defense attorneys grilled Bennie L. Edwards Sr. and his ex-wife, Delores Gibson, a 12-year Chicago police officer, on their initial inaction if it truly is their niece. The defense suggests it was the protégé -- Stephanie "Sparkle" Edwards, fired by Kelly after the two had a falling out -- who out of revenge disseminated the tape, and perhaps doctored its content.
Authorities became involved less than two months later, in February 2002, when a Chicago Sun-Times music critic received the 27-minute videotape from an anonymous source. Kelly was indicted four months later.
He has pleaded innocent. The Grammy-winning artist faces up to 15 years in prison if he is convicted. He lives in Olympia Fields but has close family ties in Elmhurst.
R. Kelly, whose real name is Robert, grew up on Chicago's impoverished South Side. The son of a single mother whom he credits with his success, Kelly rose to fame with hits such as "I Believe I Can Fly" and "Ignition."
Unlike another musical icon, Michael Jackson, who wore pajamas and entertained the crowd during his child molestation trial, the suited Kelly is somber throughout his proceedings.
Deputies escort him and his entourage of at least two burly men through secured doorways. He does not sign autographs or pose for photos with the handful of fans waiting anxiously for a glimpse of the superstar.
Cook County Circuit Judge Vincent Gaughan also is trying to avoid the Jackson circus. The no-nonsense judge imposed draconian rules on attorneys and the media.
He stripped a newspaper sketch artist of her trial press credentials Wednesday after accusing her of violating his order prohibiting the drawing of jurors' facial features.
It marked the high-profile trial's second day of testimony. The Cook County jury viewed the videotape at the trial's opening. The defense team questions its authenticity since the tape was copied several times. The original never surfaced. The FBI couldn't verify it was Kelly after a forensic exam.
And then there's the mole argument. The defense maintains Kelly has a dime-size mole on his lower center back, unlike the man depicted in the video.
The prosecution's witnesses who know the girl all agreed she appears 13 to 15 on the videotape. Jamison said the two had matching "mullet" haircuts at that age, similar to the girl on the video, and the area in which it was shot looks just like Kelly's former wood-sided hot tub room.
Though the defense did its best to cast doubt on the credibility of the alleged victim's aunt and uncle, who recently was arrested on cocaine possession charges, it could not shake Jamison.
The young woman, nicknamed Punky, said the two were best friends for 10 years until their junior year in high school, when the tape controversy erupted. Jamison testified she and her friend visited Kelly at his recording studios, a basketball court and his home, all in Chicago, several dozen times starting when they were around 12.
Her friend introduced Kelly as her "godfather," Jamison said, adding that the singer often gave the girl cash gifts -- "no less than $100 and no more than $500." On cross examination, the defense noted that she estimated the gifts to be $4 to $100 during her grand jury testimony in 2002.
Jamison said she never witnessed Kelly act inappropriately with her friend, who she said at times would stay with him after she left. Jamison also said her friend never told her about any romantic relationship between the two.
"Yes, but there were things I wouldn't tell her, so I'm sure there were things she wouldn't tell me," she said.
Jamison's father, Peter Thomas, also testified that the girl's involvement in the video was the talk of town. Thomas said his daughter cried herself to sleep in 2002 after seeing the tape.
The trial continues today.
Identify: Witness tells of visits to R. Kelly's house