Jussie Smollett gets 150 days in jail for faking hate crime against himself
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Jussie Smollett was sentenced to 150 days in jail by a Chicago judge on Thursday for lying to police about a politically charged robbery and hate crime that he staged against himself.
The sentence also includes 30 months probation and $120,000 in restitution to the city of Chicago.
Smollett, 39, was found guilty in December of five out of six counts of felony disorderly conduct for making false reports to police.
The former "Empire" actor, who insisted on his innocence after his sentence was read, had potentially faced up to three years in prison for each count, though Judge James Linn said Thursday he did not believe the case as it stood could result in multiple consecutive three-year terms.
Pointing to Smollett's family history of fighting social injustice, however, Linn said in his sentencing, "The hypocrisy is just astounding."
"The only thing I can find is that you really craved the attention," he added.
The performer, who is Black and gay, claimed to be the victim of a January 2019 attack in Chicago that grabbed international headlines. Smollett had claimed that two men tied a noose around his neck and shouted racist, homophobic and pro-Trump remarks at him.
Smollett had actually paid two brothers, Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo, to stage the attack, prosecutors argued during his trial. The siblings used racist and homophobic slurs against Smollett while wearing red caps similar to former President Trump's "Make America Great Again" ones and included a rope as part of the fake attack to "make it look like a hate crime."
Several of Smollett's friends and family members appeared in court to plead for leniency. Molly Smollett, the entertainer's 92-year-old grandmother, told the court, "What the media may not know is that Jussie is what I call a justice warrior. He has been active against injustice all his life."
"I ask you, the judge, not to send him to prison. If you do, send me along with him," Molly Smollett said.
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Statements supporting Smollett, who on the advice of counsel declined to comment on Thursday, were also read on behalf of the Black Lives Matter movement, NAACP President Derrick Johnson, actor Samuel L. Jackson and Jesse Jackson and the Rainbow Push Coalition.
At the beginning of Smollett's sentencing, one of his defense attorneys, Tina Glandian, unsuccessfully argued a motion for a new trial. One of the issues she raised was that the defense should have played a greater role during jury selection.
Linn pushed back on Glandian's remarks, saying some of the questions for potential jurors submitted by the defense included, "What kind of animal would you like to be?" or "Superman or Batman: what do you prefer?"
As details of the faux attack originally emerged more than two years ago, Trump and then-Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris (Calif.) condemned the alleged crime against Smollett.
Trump called the attack "horrible," but months later mocked Smollett as an "actor that nobody ever heard of." Harris initially described the ambush as "an attempted modern-day lynching," before later saying she was "sad, frustrated and disappointed" when Chicago police accused Smollett of coordinating the attack.
Smollett notably made a late entrance to his sentencing hearing on Thursday. As he entered, a member of his security detail was seen getting into a kerfuffle with journalists on the way into court, leading to a photographer getting shoved to the ground.
"There is nothing worse than to be the victim of a hate crime," Linn said before announcing his sentence. "And I believe that you did damage to real hate crimes, to hate crime victims."
"Your very name has become an adverb for lying."
-Tristan Lejeune contributed.
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Five months in prison for this sounds about right to me.
He still hasnt shown any remorse.
You are right about that. Smug jackass.
Also, it seems he's been hiding some shit from his granny. A Justice Warrior? Oh brother!
Shingles doesn't care...
150 days for 5 felony convictions, is 30 days each, sounds more like misdemeanors. Way too light
After listening to the sentence 'structure' - these were level 4 (lowest level ) felonies - thus while the judge wanted to teach the unrepentant Smollett a proper lesson, leniency was 'found' in the punishment itself.
As someone who has been there, it will be the longest 150 days of his life.
Dude needs counseling. What he did was borderline insane.
Or a genuine ass-whooping instead of the fake one. Either way, something is needed to adjust his thinking.
He is arrogant. Apparently, he needs to learn humility. I do hope the (greater) bulk of his life is not what it takes for him to squander away to learn it.
And the district attorney for cook county, who tried to protect Smollett originally, attacked the verdict. Kim foxx is a vile person destroying the Criminal justice system from within.
What Smollett did was reprehensible and it is hard to imagine it not being motivated by serious mental and emotional problems. I hope he gets help now...
Me too. Emphatically. It is intriguing to want to know why he felt so 'lost' in his life; from the outside looking "in" he had so much going for himself!
I do not think what should stay between Smollett and his mental health providers is yours or anyone else's business. He needs a lot less, not more, public attention...
It probably should be kept secret. I am interested all the same. As a young homosexual man whom's work on and off the screen (he sang for the Obama's at the White House too) I thoroughly was captivated by his (being the franchise player on "Empire" carrying the show week to week) performances, and I did not see his fall from 'grace' coming or being so 'raw.' I was completely caught off-guard by his deceitful acts that in my opinion ruined everything and 'killed off' an entire series (franchise) singlehandedly.
So yes, if something more about his mind and attitudes about his life is shared I would be piqued (if only briefly) to hear or read it, nevertheless! In my life, I can't recall ever reading or hearing about an entertainer who worked this type of deceit. I would like to know what the heaven was up with Jussie Smollett. Yes, I would.
Believe me when I say, he deceived a great many people who were 'onboard' with the rise and fame of Jussie Smollet we deserve to know why he 'knifed' us (all)—if only for closure!
One more thing: I have senior-aged church-going women who are telling me today how mystified they are about what happened to this young man; as there was a stellar cast coming and going through "Empire" the series. Big-name star-power. GALORE.
Another thing: Jussie is 'signaling' with his declarative exclamation at the end of sentencing: 'I am not suicidal. . . if something happens to me in prison. . . it will not be my doing.'
This is apprehension and panic setting in: Jussie feels or has the idea in his head that a great many people associated with his incarceration may be angry at what he is found guilty of doing to the careers and reputations of a lot of other good people. Or, just may take grave exception to the let-down he is to his groups and organizations.
He has also thrown his acting career down the drain. He will be what is called box office poison.
Smollett did not even get close to what was deserved. No way in Hades was justice served.
What did he 'deserve' - I am curious to know. Vent already. Let it all out!!
Smollet hired the two guy who assaulted him to do so. His brother ranted in court that he is innocent. I just hope that his sister who is a wonderful actress (Eve's Bayou) is not as clueless as her two idiot brothers.
The bonafide hate crime that Smollett committed deserves considerably more than a mere 3 months in jail that he probably will serve only half that time.
I just watched the video of his sentencing. That judge is what all judges should aspire to be like. Then I watched his family and some random ahole respond to the sentencing. All of the evidence was spot on and still they won't admit that their brother fucked up royally. IMO, the most damning piece of evidence was not that he was stupid enough to pay his actors with a check, being on the street at 2 am in double digit below zero weather to get a sub sandwich, called someone for them to hear the fake attack, or gave the two actors money to buy the rope and bleach. It was that his two hired actors never got the chance to place the noose around his neck, scared off by an approaching car. He did that to himself and wore it all the way home. It was a loose noose hanging off of his shoulders at that point but when the cops arrived to interview him, it was suddenly cinched tightly around his neck. But the kicker from the random ahole was bringing up that if Trump won't be held accountable for his lying, why should JS be.
This incident took place in the neighborhood known as Streeterville . Here is a partial photo of the area
It is not an area where one would expect to find two MAGA yahoos wandering around with nooses at 2 in the morning in the dead of winter. There are hotels and luxury condos in the area, not redneck dive bars. Smolett's claim never made much sense.
It was like he was following the Al Shapton playbook.
Even the not so Rev Sharpton would do something that stupid!
Agreed.
He would and he did....Twana Brawley.
Yeah, that's true.
As he has flushed his acting career, his expensive condo may be gone as his money train will be drying up. Maybe he can crash on a friend's couch.
Wow! Good thing he wasn't a white, racist, traitorous MAGA't attacking the Capitol in a criminal attempt to overthow a legal election. He might have gotten a slap on the wrist and a stern warning.
BREAKING NEWS!
Jussie Smollett has been released from jail pending an appeal of his conviction
(That's all from this NT REPORTER .)
JS is such an idiot. The appeal won't happen for months and he will lose it because the evidence against him is just too strong. He would have served his time and been out by then.
If he is immunocomprimised, that is the only reason imo that he should have been released until his appeal. The question is what happens if he loses his appeal and is ordered back to jail? Do they put him in protective custody or opt for house arrest?
Could be. Either way, he will ask the court to "defer" to him (shamelessly). Also, there is a constitutional "question," that is likely going to be presented at this appeal court hearing (from the CNN link):
I do not have an opinion on the theory of the case; it is a version of what Smollett's lawyers are preparing to argue in Appeal's court, nevertheless.