Jussie Smollett arrives with his family at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse in Chicago on Dec. 8, 2021. | Source: Chicago Tribune / Getty
UPDATED: 4:00 p.m. ET, Nov. 21, 2024Originally published: June 24, 2019
“Empire” actor Jussie Smollett‘s conviction for staging a hate crime hoax against himself has been overturned, bringing his self-induced yearslong legal saga to an unexpected end. Smollett was found guilty nearly three years ago after being indicted following claims he was the victim of a racist and homophobic attack in Chicago that never actually happened.
“The state’s highest court found that a special prosecutor should not have been allowed to intervene after the Cook County state’s attorney initially dropped charges against Smollett in exchange for him forfeiting his $10,000 bond and conducting community service,” the Associated Press reported.
Smollett was convicted in December of 2021 after a jury deliberated for more than nine hours following a trial that lasted nearly two weeks. Smollett was found guilty of five of six counts of disorderly conduct over accusations that he lied to police in Chicago about the alleged hate crime in January 2019.
Love Hot 107.9 - Hot Spot ATL? Get more! Join the Hot 107.9 - Hot Spot ATL Newsletter
Thank you for subscribing! Please be sure to open and click your first newsletter so we can confirm your subscription.
Smollett was facing a maximum of 18 years in prison ahead of his verdict but instead was remanded to jail for 150 days and fined around $130,000.
Prosecutors argued that Smollett paid brothers Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo to stage the attack. The two Nigerian-American brothers testified against Smollett during the trial and corroborated prosecutors’ allegations. But Smollett, who is openly gay, took the stand in his own defense, maintained his innocence and described a sexual relationship with Abimbola Osundairo, an aspiring actor.
There were many twists and turns in the investigation, causing speculation to rise.
On Jan. 29, 2019, while walking to a Subway, two men reportedly yelled racial and homophobic slurs at the actor after he exited a restaurant, investigators told The Hollywood Reporter. They allegedly punched and poured bleach on Smollett while one of the suspects put a rope around his neck. As they fled the scene, Smollett told police they said, “This is MAGA country.”
From the beginning, the Chicago Police Department appeared to drop the ball with their handling of the case in the media. First, a police spokesperson said there was no footage of the assailants. Then, hours later, there were two “persons of interest” on video. They also claimed the “Empire” actor “refused” to give the cops his phone. All of these inconsistent reports have prompted some to say Smollett fabricated the attack.
Smollett starred on Fox’s popular series “Empire” since 2015. He played Jamal, a successful singer in the musical Lyon family who is openly gay. He is also the winner of four NAACP Image Awards and has a long history in social justice and activism.
See the complete timeline below of the criminal investigation into Jussie Smollett’s staged hate crime hoax against himself.
On January 22, a letter containing a white powder was received by Chicago’s Cinespace Studios, where “Empire” is filmed. The letter prompted a HAZMAT response and the Chicago Police Department said the “white substance” was determined to be aspirin. The cut out letter read, “Jussie Smollett, You will die black fag.”
2. January 29, 2019
TMZ breaks the news that Jussie Smollett was attacked in a possible hate crime. Original reports claimed while walking to a Subway in Chicago, two men reportedly yelled racial and homophobic slurs at the 36-year-old actor after he exited the restaurant. They punched him, allegedly poured bleach on him and one of the suspects also put a rope around his neck.
3. Late January 30, 2019
Hours after the Chicago Police Department says there was no footage of the attack, an unclear image is released of two persons of interest.
4. January 31, 2019
Source: WENN
Surveillance footage shows two persons of interest. A neighbor claimed she saw two suspicious people outside of the apartment building she and Smollett live in about 90 minutes before the assault, TMZ reported. She described one of the men as looking like a “redneck” and she saw “what looked like a rope, or a clothesline, protruding from the bottom of his sweatshirt, made of white and blue material.” The neighbor also claimed there was another man about 300 feet away, who near another entrance to the building.
5. February 1, 2019
Source: Getty
Chicago Police Department claims that Jussie Smollett did not give his phone to officers. “The sources say cops ‘informally asked’ Jussie if he would surrender his phone … to verify he was talking to his manager on his cell when he was attacked,” TMZ reported. “We’re told he felt ‘uncomfortable’ doing that and declined, but he was never asked about phone records. A Chicago police official had said Jussie refused to turn over both the phone and records. We’re told Smollett has already said he will provide the records, and is in the process of gathering them.” (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP)
Jussie Smollett already had a show scheduled at the Troubadour in the West Hollywood area of Los Angeles before he was attacked on Jan. 29. On Feb. 3, Fortunately, he spoke to the audience and said he fought back against his attackers, saying, “I’m the gay 2Pac.” He also said, “Be as Black, be as proud, be as gay… Now is the time. Be Blacker, be gayer!”
7. February 11, 2019
Source: Getty
Reporters from the New York Post, reportedly found an empty bottle with a bleach odor after retracing Jussie Smollett’s path the night of the attack. However, the Chicago Police Department is not sure if the bottle is “related” to the attack. Rumors have started that Smollett staged the attack. (Photo by Gabriel Olsen/Getty Images)
8. February 14, 2019
Smollett sits down for his first TV interview with Robin Roberts on “Good Morning America.” He denies all rumors that the attack was a hoax, saying, “I have to acknowledge the lies, and the hate. And it feels like if I had said it was a Muslim, or a Mexican, or someone black, I feel like the doubters would have supported me much more. A lot more… And that says a lot about the place that we are in our country right now. It’s not necessarily that you don’t believe that this is the truth, you don’t even want to see the truth.”
9. February 15, 2019
Source: WENN
It is reported two men from Nigeria, brothers Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo, were being held by Chicago police as of Feb. 13 but released on Feb. 15. No charges were filed and they are released after producing new evidence, including receipts that indicate they bought the bleach and rope. TMZ reports they were extra on “Empire.”
10. February 16, 2019
The cast reportedly “shifted” to whether the actor staged the attack by allegedly paying the two Nigerian brothers $3500. According to Variety.com, Smollett’s attorney said in a statement, “As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with. He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying.”
11. February 20, 2019
Jussie Smollett was classified as a suspect in a criminal investigation for filing a false police report. Detectives began presenting evidence before a Cook County Grand Jury.
12. February 21, 2019
13. February 24, 2019
Source: Getty
The FBI reportedly tells TMZ that Chicago Police Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson went “too far” and “overstated” when he said the “Empire” actor wrote the hateful Jan. 22 letter to himself and that he paid the Nigerian brothers to stage the attack. It also comes forward that the $3500 that was allegedly paid for the attack was actually for fitness training. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
14. Later February 21, 2019
Jussie Smollett’s mugshot is released.
15. February 25, 2019
In an interview with Robin Roberts on “Good Morning America,” Chicago Police Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson explains why he thinks Smollett is guilty. Johnson is slammed by many on social media for going on “Good Morning America” and raises more suspicions about the credibility of the Chicago PD, considering their long, corrupt history.
16. February 28, 2019
Source: Getty
The two Nigerian-American brothers released a public statement early on saying they were not homophobic. However, homophobic tweets surfaced that they later deleted and at least three actors on the set of “Empire” confirmed they used homophobic slurs. (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images)
17. March 1, 2019
Ola and Abel Osundairo issue an apology for the alleged staged attack via their lawyer. CNN.com, reports, “My clients have tremendous regret over their involvement in this situation, and they understand how it has impacted people across the nation, particularly minority communities and especially those who have been victims of hate crimes themselves.”
18. March 26, 2019
Source: Radio One Houston
The “Empire” actor was preparing to go to trial fo 16 felony counts of disorderly conduct for filing a false police report. However, the prosecutor dropped all charges and released the following statement, according to the Chicago Tribune, “We believe this outcome is a just disposition and appropriate resolution to this case.” The Chicago Police were reportedly “furious” and Mayor Rham Emanuel claimed it was a “whitewash.”
19. April 11
Source: GlobalGrind
The city of Chicago sues Jussie Smollett. The complaint reads “expended significant resources and manpower, including, but not limited to, $130,106.15 in [Chicago Police Department] overtime pay that the City paid solely due to Defendant’s false statements.”
20. April 30
Source: Getty
Fox releases the following statement, “By mutual agreement, the studio has negotiated an extension to Jussie Smollett’s option for season six, but at this time there are no plans for the character of Jamal to return to ‘Empire.'” (Photo credit should read VALERIE MACON/AFP/Getty Images)
21. June 4, 2019
Lee Daniels reveals the actor is officially out of “Empire.”
22. May 23, 2019
Source: Getty
Although all charges were dropped against the “Empire” actor and the file was sealed, a judge unsealed the file. The court docs showed the CPD knew charges might be dropped and, despite misreporting, his community service was not for the alleged hoax. (Antonio Perez/ Chicago Tribune/TNS via Getty Images) photography,celebrities,people,arts culture and entertainment,horizontal,usa,actor,messy,illinois,chicago – illinois,human interest,leaving,jussie smollett
23. June 6, 2019
The 911 call is released the night of the attack. Listen above.
24. June 24, 2019
Body cam footage from the Chicago Police Departments shows the “Empire” actor with a noose around his neck the night of the attack. Watch above.
