Judge Bars Sketch Artist From R. Kelly Trial
The Chicago judge in R&B singer R. Kelly’s high-profile child pornography trial has barred the Chicago Tribune’s sketch artist from the courtroom for the duration of the proceedings.
Judge Vincent Gaughan asserted that the artist, Cheryl Cook, violated his strict order not to create images of jurors for publication, the Tribune reports in its Gavel to Gavel coverage of the case online.
Sketch artists, the Tribune reports, had been instructed by the judge to portray jurors as ovals, without any features.
In today’s issue of the Tribune, Cook’s renderings depicted facial expression on some jurors.
The Tribune’s lawyer called the move on the judge’s part “extraordinary.”
“We intend to file a motion asking the judge to reconsider, because we certainly did not intend to violate the court’s order,” the lawyer, Karen Flax, is quoted saying.
