Attorneys representing convicted sex offender R. Kelly assert in new court filings that their client experienced a medical overdose while incarcerated and required hospitalization. The legal team claims the incident occurred after prison staff administered medication with instructions for use.
According to documents filed on Monday and reviewed by The Guardian, the 58-year-old singer, currently serving time at the federal correctional institution in Butner, North Carolina – a facility known for housing sex offenders – **reportedly collapsed last Friday**. He was subsequently transported to Duke University Hospital.
The court filing provides a detailed account from Kelly’s lawyers. They allege that Kelly was placed in solitary confinement on June 10. While in isolation, he was given medication by correctional officers along with directives on how to take it.
The filing states that in the early hours of June 13, Kelly woke up feeling unwell, experiencing faintness, dizziness, and visual disturbances described as “black spots.” The situation escalated when Kelly attempted to stand but fell to the ground. He then allegedly crawled to his cell door before losing consciousness.
The documents claim Kelly was placed on a gurney and taken by ambulance to Duke University Hospital. During the ambulance journey, his lawyers allege Kelly overheard a prison officer remark, “This is going to open a whole new can of worms.”
Upon arrival at the hospital, Kelly’s legal team contends he was informed that he had been given **”an overdose quantity” of his prescribed medications, a dosage that “threatened his life.”** He reportedly remained hospitalized for two days recovering from the incident.
The Bureau of Prisons has not commented on the allegations. When approached by USA Today, which first reported on the filing, the agency declined to speak, citing “pending litigation.”
This recent filing follows a previous emergency motion submitted by Kelly’s lawyers. In that earlier submission, they made the serious allegation that three Bureau of Prisons officials had orchestrated a plot involving another inmate with the intent to kill Kelly. That motion included a request for Kelly to be released to home detention.
Federal prosecutors have strongly opposed any such release. In their response to the prior motion, they characterized Kelly as a **”prolific child molester”** who is **”unapologetic”** and has **”never taken responsibility”** for his long history of sexually abusing children.
Prosecutors dismissed Kelly’s request for release under the guise of a “fanciful conspiracy,” stating that his motion **”makes a mockery of the harm suffered by Kelly’s victims.”**
In the filing submitted on Monday detailing the alleged overdose, Kelly’s legal team reiterated their appeal to the court, requesting an order for a temporary furlough allowing him to be placed under home detention.
R. Kelly was convicted in 2021 on charges including racketeering and sex trafficking, resulting in a 30-year prison sentence. He faced further legal consequences in 2022, being found guilty on three counts related to producing child sexual abuse imagery and three counts of child enticement, receiving a concurrent 20-year sentence.
