VanAllen not too long ago shared her story on the Lifetime sequence “Surviving R. Kelly.”
In a shock transfer that shocked the lots, R. Kelly was arrested final week on 10 costs prison sexual abuse. The singer has pleaded not responsible and his lawyer, Steve Greenberg, adamantly denies the accusations in opposition to Kelly, however for these which have been following the allegations sexual misconduct in opposition to the singer for over a decade, this arrest has been a very long time coming.
In 2008, Lisa VanAllen was 5 months pregnant when she took the stand in Kelly’s case the place he was acquitted 14 counts little one pornography. Kelly made worldwide headlines after prosecutors claimed intercourse tape, allegedly that includes the singer and an underage woman, made the rounds on the web. VanAllen was additionally featured on the tape, the one different individual on the video, and testified on behalf the prosecution. She was scrutinized, criticized, and when Kelly was discovered not responsible, she in the end felt as if the jury did not imagine her as one the primary younger girls to say that they have been sexually abused by the award-winning singer.
Following Kelly’s current arrest, VanAllen has written an op-ed piece for the New York Occasions titled “I Survived R. Kelly, Once more and Once more” the place she recollects assembly Kelly as a teen. He was in his 30s.
“I used to be simply 17 once I met Rob years earlier, nonetheless a minor myself when he first coaxed me into group intercourse with him and the woman on the tape. He informed me she was 16,” Van Allen wrote. “On the primary day trial, I assumed one Rob’s associates who had threatened to kill me a number of months earlier may strive. As a result of Rob knew that I knew the entire reality. A number of individuals testified in opposition to him, however solely three us — Rob, the opposite woman and I — knew the whole lot. The opposite woman wouldn’t testify. Her dad and mom refused to confess she was within the video; they failed her. So I used to be the one left to close up.”
“Taking the stand was one essentially the most harrowing experiences my life. I used to be barraged with questions for 3 hours, a lot so I virtually forgot who was on trial. I used to be belittled and embarrassed. I used to be dragged for unhealthy issues I had completed in my previous. I used to be referred to as a ‘streetwalker.’ They wished me to really feel like trash.”
VanAllen, who was featured in govt producer Dream Hampton’s Lifetime documentary Surviving R. Kelly, additionally wrote “It’s been a very long time coming, however right here we’re. The documentary, the #MeToo and the #MuteRKelly actions and the courageous individuals talking their reality or organizing for change have led to new indictments in opposition to Rob and opened peoples eyes. If convicted, he may withstand 70 years in jail.”
Time will solely inform whether or not or not Kelly’s upcoming case will finish like his final.