R. Kelly Taken Off Suicide Watch In NYC Federal Jail, Officials Say

NEW YORK CITY — R. Kelly is no longer on suicide watch in a Brooklyn federal jail after a whirlwind weekend of legal wrangling over his confinement, officials said.

Federal authorities placed Kelly on suicide watch “for his own safety” after he received a 30-year prison sentence for using his fame to sexually abuse young girls, according to court filings.

But Kelly’s attorney Jennifer Bonjean sued over his placement on suicide watch, arguing it was “solely for punitive purposes and because of his status as a high-profile inmate.”

“Nothing occurred during sentencing that came as a surprise to Mr. Kelly,” she wrote in the lawsuit. “While the conditions of suicide watch may be appropriate for individuals who are truly at risk of hurting themselves, they are cruel and unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment for individuals who are not suicidal.”

The lawsuit filed July 1 prompted Assistant U.S. Attorney Melanie Speight to respond quickly with filing outlining the grim future Kelly, 55, faces that undoubtedly will bring “emotional distress.”

“He is a convicted sex offender who has been sentenced to spend the next three decades in prison," Speight wrote. "In the immediate future, he faces another federal criminal trial in Chicago for charges related to child pornography.”

But, in the end, jail officials took Kelly off suicide watch, they wrote in documents filed Monday.

Left unsaid in the court documents is the heightened scrutiny that the U.S. Bureau of Prisons has faced after financier Jeffrey Epstein apparently killed himself in a federal lockup in New York City.

Kelly’s fame as the singer of hits such as "I Believe I Can Fly” has been eclipsed over the decades as disturbing sexual abuse accusations trailed him from his hometown of Chicago.

A federal trial in New York City last year ended with Kelly’s conviction on racketeering and sex trafficking charges. He plans to appeal his conviction while he awaits transfer to Chicago for another trial.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.