AFTER 6 YEARS THE R. KELLY TRIAL HAS BEGUN!

THE LATEST FROM A CHICAGO COURTROOM!

Jury selection can begin in R. Kelly's long-delayed child pornography trial, a judge ruled Friday.

Cook County Circuit Court Judge Vincent Gaughan denied a defense motion to again postpone the trial in which the Grammy-winning R&B singer is accused of having sex with a girl as young as 13 on videotape. The trial has been delayed for six years.

Defense attorney Marc Martin told the court the jury pool was "irrevocably poisoned" by an article in Friday's Chicago Sun-Times citing unnamed sources talking about a potential witness.

But prosecutors contended it was premature to say the article affected potential jurors and that if any were tainted, they could be weeded out during the selection process.

Publicity surrounding the case has heated up and some media has speculated about who might testify.

Kelly didn't acknowledge the crowd Friday morning as he walked into the courthouse with several other people and a videographer. Raucous onlookers shouted "I love you" and "R. Kelly's a pedophile."