After years of delays, R. Kelly [ tickets ]'s child pornography trial began yesterday (5/20) in Chicago with opening statements followed by a screening of the sex tape in which, prosecutors allege, Kelly is seen having sex with an underage girl, according to publishe reports. The jurors reportedly sat motionless watching the video while a grim-looking Kelly--whose real name is Robert Kelly--intently watched the footage.

At the beginning of the 27-minute homemade video, the man hands the female money and she mouths the words "Thank you." The man speaks to the female in a hushed voice and she calls him "Daddy," according to the Associated Press.

Prosecutors say the girl in the video was as young as 13 when the tape was made between Jan. 1, 1998, and Nov. 1, 2000. However, defense attorneys told jurors in their opening statements that Kelly, now 41, is not the man on the tape. The defense also told jurors that the girl who authorities allege is depicted on the video is not the female on the tape.

The female that prosecutors claim was on the tape also denies she's the person in the video. However, the prosecution said it will not be calling the alleged victim to the stand.

The defense took advantage of the state's decision not to have the female testify--asking jurors why prosecutors wouldn't call her as a witness.

"One answer," defense attorney Sam Adam Jr. said. "One: It's not her on that tape." Adam also raised questions about the tape's validity, saying no one knows where the tape originated. The tape was mailed to the Chicago Sun-Times in 2002 and the paper turned it over to authorities. Adam reportedly said the videotape in evidence is "at best a copy of a copy of a copy," reiterating that Kelly is not the man on the tape.

The key piece of evidence may end up being a mole on Kelly's back. Adam displayed a photo of Kelly's back in which the dime-sized mole could be seen on courtroom monitors. He urged the jurors to closely watch for the mole on the back of the man in the videotape. "There is no mole on his back," Adam said. "Robert isn't that man on the tape."

Chicago police investigator Dan Everett testified for the prosecution, saying he knew the female depicted in the tape was an underage girl because he had interviewed her as part of an earlier investigation. Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan called a sidebar outside the jury's presence and threatened to declare a mistrial because Everett had been instructed not to use the word "investigation." Returning to the stand, Everett told the jury he had interviewed the young female on Dec. 5, 2000, 14 months before he began investigating the videotape. He did not say what the previous investigation involved.

If convicted, Kelly faces up to 15 years of incarceration.