Empire Star Jussie Smollett Sentenced To 150 Days In Jail For Hate Crime Hoax

Former
Empire
star
Jussie
Smollett
was
sentenced
to
five
months
in
jail
on
Thursday
(March
10)
for
concocting
a
hate
crime
hoax.
According
to
reports,
Jussie
had
claimed
to
police
that
he
was
jumped
by
two
men
who
yelled
racist
and
homophobic
slurs.

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Cook
County
Judge
James
Linn
ordered
Smollett’s
jail
sentence
to
begin
immediately
following
the
hearing.
According
to
Variety,
Judge
James
Linn
ordered
Smollett
to
pay
$120,000
restitution
to
the
city
of
Chicago,
plus
a
$25,000
fine,
and
to
serve
30
months
of
probation.

After
the
sentence
was
announced,
Smollett
loudly
maintained
his
innocence
on
lying
to
police
about
the
racist
and
homophobic
attack
that
he
orchestrated
himself.
He
stood
up
and
said,
“Your
Honor,
I
respect
you
and
I
respect
the
jury
but
I
did
not
do
this.
And
I
am
not
suicidal.”

“And
if
anything
happens
to
me
when
I
go
in
there,
I
did
not
do
it
to
myself.
And
you
must
all
know
that,” he
added
and
continued
to
shout
as
he
was
led
out
of
the
courtroom
and
remanded
to
custody.
The
actor’s
family
members
echoed
his
comments.

His
grandmother,
92-year-old
Molly
Smollett,
told
the
court.
“I
ask
you,
judge,
not
to
send
him
to
prison.
If
you
do,
send
me
along
with
him,
OK?”

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Smollett’s
attorneys
asked
the
court
to
limit
the
sentence
to
community
service,
arguing
that
he
had
already
been
punished
by
the
criminal
justice
system
and
damage
to
his
career.
His
attorney
later
asked
that
the
jail
term
be
stayed,
but
County
Judge
James
Linn
denied
the
request.

Notably,
Smollett
was
convicted
during
a
trial
in
December
2021
on
five
out
of
six
charges
of
“disorderly
conduct,”
reportedly
a
Class
4
felony
in
US,
Cook
County.
The
actor
apparently
was
expected
to
get
probation
because
he
had
a
minimal
prior
record,
but
the
charges
carried
a
maximum
of
three
years
in
prison.