Jussie Smollett has been found guilty of staging a hate crime against himself and lying to the police back in 2019.
On Thursday, a jury returned a verdict that found Smollett guilty of five of the six felony disorderly counts that he was charged for after nine hours of deliberation. He was acquitted on count six.
The convictions are class 4 felonies that could carry a three-year sentence, but Smollett may not serve any jail time and may receive probation since he doesn’t have any priors, Chicago Tribune reports. Sentencing will be at a later date.
In response to his sentencing, Donald Trump Jr, had quite a bit to say. He tweeted, We finally got #justiceforjussie.” He also added, “I’m just happy to live in a country where people will go to jail for attacking a gay black man… There’s absolutely no place for that s**t in America, or anywhere else, and I am happy the perpetrator was brought to justice.”
If you recall, Jussie attempted to get the case dismissed in October of 2021 because he had already made a deal in Cook County to drop the charges. The deal included community service and a forfeited $10,000 bond, but the request was denied.
In an interview with Lamont Hill, Smollett stated that authorities wouldn’t let the situation go. “They won’t let this go,” Jussie said. “It doesn’t matter. There is an example being made. And the sad thing is that there’s an example being made of someone that did not do what they’re being accused of.”
Although a grand jury indicted him in March 2019, the case was dropped weeks later, per NBC News. Then, a special prosecutor picked it back up and charged him with disorderly conduct for lying to police.
Roomies, was justice served?
