The Conviction of Actor Jussie Smollett Was Overturned

The Illinois Supreme Court has reversed Jussie Smollett’s convictions.

After being convicted of lying about being the victim of a racist and homophobic attack and filing a false police report, the former “Empire” actor was sentenced to 150 days in prison in March 2022. However, his convictions were reversed after his legal team filed an appeal in September.

Even though the original accusations against Smollett were dismissed, his lawyers said that the actor’s rights were violated when a special prosecutor chose to retry him.

In 2019, Smollett said he was attacked by two men in downtown Chicago as part of a hate crime. The actor, 42, said that the men threw a noose around his neck and that he was the target of racial and homophobic taunts.

His claims were then called into question, and the police ultimately concluded that he had orchestrated the incident with two friends.

However, after Smollett forfeited a $10,000 bond and performed community service, the charges were eventually withdrawn.

A special prosecutor then re-indicted him in 2020, and Smollett was found guilty of fabricating a police report and lying about being attacked, receiving a 150-day jail term.

Since then, Smollett’s attorneys have maintained that the case ought to have been closed when the initial charges of disorderly conduct were dropped, following his completion of community service and bond payment.

The convictions have now been overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court, which recognized that Smollett had previously complied with the terms of his 2019 plea deal.

Smollett has consistently insisted that he was the victim of a hate crime and that “there was no hoax.”