Jussie Smollett’s conviction on charges of organizing an attack on himself is overturned

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Actor Jussie Smolletts The conviction on charges that he carried out a racist and homophobic attack on himself in downtown Chicago in 2019 and lied to police was overturned Thursday over prosecutorial concerns in an Illinois Supreme Court decision that rejected his claim of innocence was treated.

The the state’s highest court found that a special prosecutor should not have intervened after the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office initially dropped charges against Smollett in exchange for forfeiting his $10,000 bond and performing community service.

Smollett, who is black and gay, claimed two men attacked him, shouted racist and homophobic slurs and threw a noose around his neck, sparking a massive search for suspects by Chicago police detectives and causing an international outcry. Smollett appeared in the television drama “Empire,” which was filmed in Chicago, and prosecutors alleged he staged the attack because he was unhappy with the studio’s response to hate mail he received.

“We are aware that this case has generated significant public interest and that many people were dissatisfied with the resolution of the original case and felt it was unjust,” Justice Elizabeth Rochford wrote in the court’s 5-0 opinion. “Nevertheless, what would be more unjust than the resolution of any criminal case would be for this court to find that the state is not obliged to honor agreements on which people have harmfully relied.”

Smollett’s attorneys argued that the case was over when Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx came to the office decreased an initial 16 counts of disorderly conduct. The deal early immediate response, with then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel calling it “a whitewash of justice.” A special prosecutor was appointed and a grand jury reinstated the indictment, leading to Smollett’s conviction in 2021. five charges of disorderly conduct.

“This was not a prosecution based on facts, rather it was a vindictive prosecution and such a proceeding has no place in our criminal justice system,” Smollett’s attorney Nenye Uche said in a statement. Uche said “the rule of law was the big winner today” and thanked the court for “restoring order to Illinois criminal jurisprudence.”

Special Prosecutor Dan Webb said he disagreed with the court’s ruling but noted that it “has nothing to do with Mr. Smollett’s innocence.”

“The Illinois Supreme Court found no error in the overwhelming evidence presented at trial that Mr. Smollett orchestrated a false hate crime and reported it to the Chicago Police Department as a real hate crime, or the jury’s unanimous verdict that Mr. Smollett was a true hate crime. guilty of five counts of disorderly conduct,” Webb said.

A spokesperson said Foxx would be available for comment later Thursday. Eileen O’Neill Burke, the incoming Cook County State’s Attorney who was elected this month to replace Foxx after deciding not to seek a third term, declined to comment.

Testimony at the trial revealed that Smollett paid $3,500 to two men he knew from “Empire” to carry out the attack. Prosecutors said he told them what insults to shout and told them to shout that Smollett was in “MAGA country,” an apparent reference to the slogan of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.

Smollett testified that “there was no deception” and that he was the victim of a hate crime in his downtown Chicago neighborhood.

He was sentenced to 150 days in prison, six of which he had previously served released pending appeal – and was ordered to pay approximately $130,000 in restitution.

Webb noted that Chicago officials can still pursue their civil case against Smollett, which aims to recover $130,000, the amount police say they paid in overtime to pursue Smollett’s charges.

Smollett, a child actor who appeared in the 1992 film “The Mighty Ducks,” has credited his role as a singer in the hip-hop drama “Empire” to turbocharging his career. This year he starred in the film “The Lost Holliday” with Vivica A. Fox.

Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis and Justice Joy Cunningham did not participate in Thursday’s decision.

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Tareen reported from Chicago.

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