R. Kelly Placed in Solitary Confinement

Four years ago, R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison in New York on racketeering and trafficking convictions. He is also serving a separate 20-year Chicago sentence for child pornography and enticement, most of which runs concurrently.
Now, reports say Kelly has been placed in the Special Housing Unit — commonly referred to in federal prison slang as “the hole” — at the Federal Correctional Institution in Butner, North Carolina. Inmates housed in the SHU can spend up to 23 hours a day in a cell with limited phone access, visits, and legal materials.
Court filings describe the move as stemming from an undisclosed infraction, with some reports suggesting prison officials found a retired warden’s phone number in Kelly’s possession.
Meanwhile, Kelly’s attorney, Beau Brindley, claims the transfer happened just minutes before a scheduled legal visit. According to Brindley, Kelly was unable to access his legal documents, complicating efforts to prepare filings tied to allegations of an assassination plot, a suspicious overdose, and claims of government misconduct in his request for a new trial.


Kelly remains behind bars as his legal team continues pushing for relief — but for now, he’s reportedly sitting in “the hole.”