2 of R. Kelly's defense lawyers withdraw in shake-up just months before trial

Two of R. Kelly's top lawyers no longer want to represent the disgraced R&B singer, just two months before he’s scheduled to stand trial in Brooklyn federal court.

Two of R. Kelly's top lawyers no longer want to represent the disgraced R&B singer just two months before he’s scheduled to stand trial in a Brooklyn, New York, federal court on sex abuse charges. Lead defense attorney Steve Greenberg and Michael Leonard filed a request to withdraw from the case Monday. They told a judge during a status conference Wednesday they no longer want to represent Kelly, citing a lack of cooperation with his two other lawyers. “Everyone wants to do opening, everyone wants to do closing, and that just can’t be,” Greenberg said Wednesday. “It got to the point where we went to discuss these concerns with Mr. Kelly. Mr. Kelly wouldn’t meet with us.” Another defense attorney, Thomas Farinella, asserted that it was Kelly's decision to let go of Greenberg and Leonard.