Disgraced R&B singer R. Kelly was reportedly rushed to a hospital after suffering an overdose on medication given to him by prison staff, according to a new legal filing from his attorneys. The 57-year-old, currently serving a 30-year prison sentence for sex trafficking and racketeering, allegedly collapsed inside the Federal Correctional Institute in Butner, North Carolina, and was later transported to Duke University Hospital for emergency treatment.
Kelly, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, claims that the overdose occurred on June 13, just days after he was placed in solitary confinement. His attorneys allege that the medication he was given—prescribed for anxiety—was deliberately administered in excessive amounts by prison guards as retaliation for a separate complaint he filed. In that complaint, Kelly accused federal prison officials of orchestrating a plot to have him killed by members of a white supremacist gang.
According to the legal filing, Kelly was feeling faint, dizzy, and began to see black spots in his vision before losing consciousness. He was reportedly heard saying to a staff member, “This is going to open a new can of worms,” before passing out.
The Bureau of Prisons has declined to comment on the incident, citing ongoing litigation.
Kelly’s hospitalization lasted two days, and his legal team now claims that he was forcibly removed from the hospital and returned to prison without undergoing necessary medical procedures. Doctors allegedly discovered blood clots in his legs that require surgery—a procedure he has yet to receive.
His attorneys are now accusing the prison of medical negligence, as well as cruel and unusual punishment. “They gave him an amount of medicine that could have killed him,” the filing states.
This is just the latest development in a series of explosive allegations made by Kelly and his legal team in recent months. They claim the singer has faced continual mistreatment behind bars, including physical threats, inadequate medical care, and solitary confinement under questionable circumstances.
The June 10 placement in solitary confinement, they allege, was retaliation for a separate legal motion accusing prison officials of recruiting a terminally ill inmate to kill Kelly. That inmate, Mikeal Glenn Stine, is a confessed member of the Aryan Brotherhood gang and is reportedly dying from a terminal illness. In a sworn statement, Stine claims that prison officials promised him a chance to escape and live out his remaining days as a “free man” if he assassinated Kelly.
Stine alleges he was transferred to Kelly’s unit in March and was explicitly told by guards, “You need to do what you came here for.” He says he eventually informed Kelly of the plan rather than going through with it. A second alleged assassination plot involving a different gang member surfaced in June, further deepening fears for Kelly’s safety.
Prosecutors have called the accusations “deeply unserious” and described Kelly’s request for house arrest as “repugnant,” citing his convictions for serious sex crimes against minors.
Kelly’s lawyers have also claimed they are pursuing a presidential pardon, specifically from former President Donald Trump. “He does not have the luxury to wait for vindication from the Courts that will follow the exposure of the corruption at the heart of his prosecutions,” the filing reads.
Kelly, once one of the biggest names in R&B, was convicted in 2021 and 2022 on multiple charges including sex trafficking, racketeering, child pornography, and enticing minors. The trials included testimony from over a dozen victims and were supported by extensive video and DNA evidence. The abuse spanned decades, with victims as young as 14.
He has been incarcerated since July 2019 and is not eligible for release until 2045, when he will be 78 years old. He is currently housed in the same facility where Bernie Madoff served his sentence before his death.
The latest filing adds another dramatic chapter to the downfall of the once-celebrated singer, and it raises renewed questions about safety, accountability, and the treatment of high-profile inmates in the U.S. prison system.