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The word herpes, delivered three times in rapid-fire succession, marked a turning point forR.
Kellys sex-crimes and racketeeringtrialThursday.
When Kelly saw McGrath on June 5, 2000, complaining about bumps on his penis, things changed.
He called to request a prescription for what he called the blue pill, McGrath said.
The phone calls seemed to be frequent for the blue pills.
So often were Kellys requests, McGrath memorized the phone number to his pharmacy.
McGrath eventually told Kelly to take the medication every day, not just to combat flare-ups.
Then came the defenses cross-examination.
I feel that 100 percent he has herpes.
Are you saying, as in, I feel like its freezing in here?
Is that a question?
Well, cant you use the herpes med to treat other things?, Becker asked.
Herpes, McGrath responded.
She alleged that Kelly first engaged in sex acts with her in May 2009, when she was 16.
My birthday is April 19, Pace pointed out.
You told us [in] April 2008, when you met Robert, you were 14?
Cannick pressed, although Paces birthday meant that she would be 16 during her first sexual encounter with Kelly.
Thats correct, Pace said.
(She was indeed correct.)
Cannick also tried to rattle Pace on her reason for leaving a party at Kellys house.
Had she ever gone to parties before?, Cannick asked.
Prosecutors objected, and Judge Ann Donnelly sided with them.
Move on, Mr. Cannick, Donnelly said.
Testimony in R. Kellys case continued Friday morning, and with it came more cross-examination.
Becker asked Navarro about bathrooms and locks.
This isnt entirely surprising some of Kellys accusers were allegedly kept locked in rooms and denied bathroom access.
He replied, Yes.
She asked whether the lock was on the inside or the outside.
In other words, you go into the restroom, you lock it from the inside?
Were there any rules?
The only rule was that you cant take a No.
It would, for lack of a better word, stink up the place?
Navarro replied in the affirmative again.
Becker did see some successes, however.
He claimed to have seen Kelly engage in verbal abuse toward employees.
Becker pointed out he had told prosecutors the opposite during his interview with them in 2020.
Navarro said he thought he had coronavirus during that sit-down, impacting what he had said.
When prosecutors had a chance to requestion Navarro, they further probed the work environment.
They asked whether his experience working with Kelly was similar to others.
How was it different, they pressed.
It was a weird time for me.
The things you had to do was just a bit uncomfortable.
The music and production stuff was really good.
All the other stuff was kind of strange, Navarro said.
It was almost likeThe Twilight Zone.
You went into the gate and it was like a different world, just a strange place.
They kept it professional, he said.
There was no personal stuff he had to do in working with them.
This is a developing story and will be updated accordingly.
