Jussie Smollett Cleared By Illinois Supreme Court In Overturned Hoax Case Conviction

BYGabriel Bras Nevares620 Views
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"The Lost Holliday" Atlanta Premiere
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 23: Actor Jussie Smollett attends the Atlanta premiere of "The Lost Holliday" at AMC Madison Yards 8 on September 23, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
Smollett's lawyer said he was "very pleasantly surprised."

The Illinois Supreme Court officially overturned Jussie Smollett's conviction in his hate crime hoax case on Thursday (November 21), according to TMZ. Moreover, they spoke with Jussie's attorney Nenye Uche about the news. "Obviously, we're ecstatic, we're happy," he remarked. "But really, my position is, it shouldn't have gone this far. This prosecution was not a prosecution, it was a persecution. [...] One thing I want to really emphasize here is this was not a divided court. This was a unanimous decision. [...] [Smollett] was very pleasantly surprised." For those unaware, he received a 150-day jail sentence back in 2022 for staging a hate crime against himself.

Since then, Jussie Smollett went through a few different processes of appeal, seeing doors shut in his face before the Illinois Supreme Court heard him out. As such, this new ruling means that he will not have to fulfill his original sentence and cannot face another trial. State's Attorney Kim Foxx reached a plea deal with the actor that made him forfeit his $10,000 bond and fulfill 15 hours of community service. Per the court, since he fulfilled these hours and more, he shouldn't have faced a second prosecution, which is when he went to jail before entering appeal.

Jussie Smollett Conviction Overturned

Previously, Jussie Smollett had received a 30-month probation sentence as part of this 150-day prison sentence. "Today we resolve a question about the State's responsibility to honor the agreements it makes with defendants. The State is bound by the agreement," the Illinois Supreme Court wrote of this latest update. They actually did not focus on the details of the case and allegations themselves, but rather on the deal that the prosecution and the defense originally struck.

Sadly, though, this good news for Jussie Smollett comes amid less heartening material, such as his mother almost falling victim to burglary. Two men reportedly attempted to break into her home, but they quickly left the Los Angeles property when she realized what was going on and confronted them. Regardless, this must alleviate that stress at least a little bit, as he's been dealing with this for a long time. We'll see what else Smollett and his family have to say about all this.

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
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