R.Kelly trial update:
Back to the mole.
R. Kelly’s mole returned to the forefront of his child pornography trial on Thursday, as a forensic video analyst testified the blemish on the R&B star’s back is not identical to the dark mark seen on the man in the sex tape.
The mole has emerged as the surprise crux of the singer’s defense in the three weeks since testimony began. From the onset, his attorneys have told the jury that the caterpillar-shaped mark along Kelly’s spine would clear him of the crime.
When the sex tape is played at normal speed, the man’s naked back is visible for less than a second, and it’s difficult to spot any markings. But a prosecution witness last week showed jurors a freeze-frame image of the male participant’s back and pointed out what the witness called a mole to the left of his spine.
Kelly’s defense team countered the potentially damaging testimony Thursday with their own expert, who described the markings as “artifacts” created by the tape’s poor quality and multiple reproductions. Forensic vido analyst Charles Palm broke the half-second of footage into 17 to 23 individual frames.
The mark along the man’s spine only can be seen in two frames. In the rest, the male participant’s back is unblemished.
“There were marks on the [man's back] that came and went,” he said. “Basically, they are artifacts that bled into the image.”
Also, an expert demonstrated the tape could easily be doctored – he decided to make the man and the woman headless, which the Chicago Tribune described as “Washington Irving” characters.
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