Photo Credit: Jussie Smollett/Instagram
The Jussie Smollett case finished today with the Empire actor being found guilty on 5 of the 6 charges lodged against him in staging a hate crime against himself. When the verdict was called he was seen staring straight ahead with his fingers interlocked not moving. He didn’t look at any of his family or friends, just continued to stare straight ahead.
He was acquitted on only one count of felony disorderly conduct. He had previously stood before the jury that he didn’t lie to police and didn’t orchestrate the attack. The charges carry a potential maximum of 3 years but will likely result in probation. No sentencing date has been set yet and he remains free on bond.
What makes this case so egregious is the fact that the credibility of the Chicago Police Department was called into question, the possibility of working with city officials etc. And an enormous amount of manpower went into investigating this case so if the police department is angry and want him in prison for this, well he lied and think about all of the crimes that could have been solved while investigating this man who basically just played the media for the last near 3 years.
The media played a role in this case as well with CNN’s Don Lemon facing calls for being fired as he tipped Smollett off about this case. He let Smollett know that the Chicago Police Department didn’t believe him and this was revealed by Somllett during his testimony. People like columnist Tim Young said he should be fired next because this is the same thing that Chris Cuomo did with his brother that had him suspended. Lemon didn’t disclose his connection to the star when reporting on the story either.
And do you know who else got dragged into this? The former President Donald Trump. Remember Smollett said he was attacked by someone who said “This is MAGA country.” That automatically painted all of his supporters as racist and just think about the people who were suddenly afraid that Trump supporters were not only out in the street with nooses but in black areas as well. Mind you, Smollett didn’t live in a black neighborhood in Chicago but it did give that perception. We’re going to be looking for a statement from Trump soon because he’s definitely going to say something.