Day 4 of the federal #RKelly trial beginning in Chicago - day starts off with presiding judge Harry Leinenweber ordering the court sketch artists to "anonymize" Kelly's alleged victims in their sketches. Specifically, to "obliterate" their faces and hairstyles. @CourthouseNews A retired detective who allegedly saw one of #RKelly's sex tapes is currently in cross-examination. Defense points out he saw a VHS tape some 20 years ago, but was shown a disc yesterday. Detective said he can't be sure the disc and VHS tape are exactly the same. @CourthouseNews

Opening statements expected today in #RKelly's federal trial in Chicago. Jury selection finished yesterday afternoon, with the jury consisting of 2 white men, 2 Black men, 4 Black women and 4 white women. @CourthouseNews First news of the day from presiding judge Harry Leinenweber in #RKelly's federal trial in Chicago: one juror has called in sick and two are stuck on the train. @CourthouseNews

Jury selection has resumed in the #RKelly federal trial in Chicago with potential juror #96. At least six more jurors are needed for the panel, but presiding judge Harry Leinenweber said "the next six don't look so promising." @CourthouseNews As he suggested, federal judge Leinenweber has dismissed potential jurors #96 - #100 in the #Rkelly Chicago trial for reasons ranging from "intense anxiety" to political opposition to police and courts. One dismissed individual also advocated for abolishing the IRS.

Day 2 of #RKelly's federal trial in Chicago is underway. First order of business this morning: Late last night Kelly's co-defendant Derrel McDavid moved to dismiss the charges against him, arguing the U.S. Attorney's Office waited years too long to prosecute. @CourthouseNews McDavid faces several of the same child porn production/distribution charges as #RKelly, but is also cited in the federal indictment as one of the main people responsible for allegedly covering up videos depicting Kelly taking part in sex acts with minors. @CourthouseNews

R. Kelly's federal trial in Chicago is set to start today at 10 am CST. While Kelly was already convicted of sex trafficking and sentenced to 30 years in prison by a Brooklyn federal court in June, he still faces child porn charges in Chicago. Full story to come @CourthouseNews Trial has begun with jury selection arguments. R. Kelly's attorneys want to remove any jurors who saw the 2019 docuseries "Surviving R. Kelly." Lead R. Kelly attorney Jennifer Bonjean said "it is a fiction... that anyone [who saw the series] could be impartial." @CourthouseNews

Court has resumed in Jussie Smollett's sentencing hearing. Smollett was convicted in December of five counts of criminal disorderly conduct, for supposedly staging a bogus hate crime against himself in January 2019. @CourthouseNews

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Prosecution now presenting a victim impact statement on behalf of the City of Chicago and Chicago Police Department: "This has cost the city well over $100,000 dollars... during this period [of investigation] police and detectives put in over 1,000 hours [of labor]."

Smollett's sentencing has begun in Chicago. Defense attorneys are making arguments for why they believe Smollett should be granted a new trial. First and foremost, they claim Presiding Cook County Judge James Linn lacks jurisdiction over the case, and always has. @courthousenews

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They claim Cook County Judge Michael Toomin overstepped his authority in appointing a special prosecutor to investigate Smollett's case in August 2019, seeing as Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx had already dropped the county's charges against Smollett that March.

Follow up on the #JussieSmollett trial: special prosecutor Dan Webb says he and his legal team worked this case pro bono. "We made the decision, if we're gonna do this, we're gonna do it for the public," Webb says. He also clarifies the one count on which Smollett was found not guilty: it was a count of falsely reporting an aggravated battery. Specifically it was for the report he made to detectives two weeks after his initial report, that his attackers were wearing masks.

#BREAKING : #JussieSmollett has been found guilty on five counts of felony disorderly conduct, and not guilty of one count of felony disorderly conduct. The jury reached its verdict Thursday evening, Dec. 9, after more than nine hours of deliberation. @CourthouseNews Presiding Judge James Linn is now thanking the jury for their service. "I can tell by the way that you deliberated... that you stayed as late as you did... that you took this very seriously."

#BREAKING A verdict has been announced in Jussie #Smollett's criminal trial in Chicago. The verdict will be read shortly. @CourthouseNews It took the jury over nine hours of deliberation to reach its verdict. The verdict has not yet been read to the courtroom.

Defense beginning its closing arguments in the Jussie #Smollett trial. Defense attorney Nenye Uche says the "elephant" of assumptions that was present at the start of trial has disappeared, to be replaced by doubt. He claims the prosecution's whole case is a "house of cards" that will crumble when pressured.

Back at Cook County Criminal Courthouse for what should be the last day of Jussie #Smollett's criminal trial for allegedly staging a hate crime. Closing arguments from the lawyers are set for today, then the jury will begin deliberation. Presiding Judge James Linn says he's not putting any time limits on the lawyers for closing arguments, which means they'll go as long as prosecutors and Smollett's attorneys think they need.

Back at the #Smollett trial. A little late this morning because the Cook County bureaucracy gods demanded a sacrfice in the form of an hour of my morning. Jussie Smollett is still on the witness stand. Prosecutor Dan Webb is still cross-examining him. Webb is asking Smollett if there's any record that he canceled his scheduled morning work out with Abimbola Osundairo, the day after the alleged attack on Jan 29., 2019. Smollett says there isn't; that he was more preoccupied with other things.

Cross examination of Jussie Smollett by the state prosecutors now starting. Prosecution asking Smollett if he just said he knowingly withheld useful evidence from the police. Smollett saying he wouldn't know, at least regarding what is "useful" evidence. #Smolletttrial However, Smollett denies ever lying to the police. "I told them the truth, that I was the victim of a hate crime," he said.

Back at it at the #Smolletttrial trial in Chicago. Jussie Smollett is currently on the stand. Defense attorney Nenye Uche is currently asking Smollett about his visit to a Subway restaurant on Jan. 29, 2019, shortly before the alleged hate crime took place. Defense is trying to establish a timeline of the 29th from Smollett's perspective. A counter-narrative to the timeline that Michael Theis, the lead Chicago Police investigator into Smollett's case, gave of the evening last week.

It's Monday, Dec. 6 and week two of the Jussie #Smollett trial about to get underway. Presiding Cook County Judge James Linn said last week he expects the jury to begin deliberation by no later than Tuesday. A little late getting started today, which is surprising. Last week Linn was eager to begin testimony every morning by about 9:15 a.m. Currently 9:38 and neither Linn nor the prosecution team is in the courtroom.