Who is Jennifer Bonjean? R. Kelly's lawyer slam documentary filmmakers for not reaching out to singer over Buku Abi's claims of abuse

R. Kelly's documentary Karma: A Daughter's Journey premiered on the TVEI Streaming Network on October 11, 2024. Notably, the show also featured the former singer's daughter Buku Abi, who claimed that she was allegedly abused by Kelly during her childhood.

Meanwhile, Kelly's attorney Jennifer Bonjean, the founder of the Bonjean Law Group, has now responded to the claims made by Abi in the TVEI documentary. She shared a statement with People magazine, denying the allegations and continued:

"His ex-wife made the same allegation years ago, and it was investigated by the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services and was unfounded…. And the 'filmmakers', whoever they are, did not reach out to Mr. Kelly or his team to even allow him to deny these hurtful claims."

In 2019, Abi described R. Kelly as a monster in an Instagram story following the release of another documentary, Surviving R. Kelly. The documentary included conversations with women who claimed that Kelly allegedly used his power to se*ually and physically abuse women, as well as young girls.

Buku said in her story that she did not intend to hurt anyone with her words, adding that she is praying for everyone affected by her father's actions. She wrote that she does not share a relationship with R. Kelly and is unwilling to speak on his behalf. She further stated:

"I also am not fond of dealing with my personal issues or personal life through social media but, I feel things are starting to get out of hand."

---

R. Kelly's attorney has a long list of experience in the world of law

According to Bonjean's LinkedIn profile, she obtained her degrees in music from the DePaul University and Manhattan School of Music. She then enrolled at the Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

The Valparaiso, Indiana native's professional career started when she became an intern in the Capital Litigation Division of the Illinois State Appellate Defenders Office. She then joined the Trial Division of the Cook County Public Defender office.

Bonjean was later contacted by a 15-year-old boy named Jason Gray, who was given a life sentence after being charged with triple murder. She worked for approximately 10 years to prove Jason's innocence, and the latter was eventually released from prison in 2006.

Furthermore, she had volunteered for the women's services division of the YWCA, serving as a r*pe crisis counselor and victim's rights advocate. She has also made guest appearances on CNN, Investigation Discovery, and more.

---

Jennifer Bonjean replies to Buku Abi's claims in another statement

In the aforementioned documentary, Abi became emotional as she spoke on the allegations and said:

"He was my everything. For a long time, I didn't even want to believe that it happened. I didn't know that even if he was a bad person that he would do something to me. I was too scared to tell anybody. I was too scared to tell my mom."

Although Kelly's attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, has already responded to the claims while speaking to People magazine, she addressed the same as she appeared on the show Banfield on October 12, 2024. Bonjean said that the allegations cannot be considered to be true because someone is crying and added:

"He's probably the most highly investigated individual on the planet when it comes to these kinds of claims. Why it's coming back up, I don't really know. He certainly denies it. … I can assure you that prosecutors would have loved to put his daughter on the stand to accuse him in the many prosecutions they indicted him for."

---

R. Kelly was sentenced to 20 years in February last year after being charged with child p*rnography and enticement of minors for s*x. According to the United States Attorney's Office, he was previously convicted of racketeering and s*x trafficking in 2021, leading to another sentencing of 30 years at the time.