The conviction of actor Jussie Smollett for falsely reporting a hate crime to Chicago police in 2019 has been overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court over prosecutorial issues. The court ruled Thursday that the former "Empire" actor should not have been charged after he entered a nonprosecution agreement with the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, reports NBC News. The judges noted that the case generated "significant public interest" and many felt the original resolution from the case was unjust. "Nevertheless, what would be more unjust than the resolution of any one criminal case would be a holding from this court that the State was not bound to honor agreements upon which people have detrimentally relied," the ruling said. Smollett was sentenced to 150 days in jail and 30 months’ probation for five counts of felony disorderly conduct.
The actor told police in January 2019 that he was the victim of a hate crime, having been brutally attacked in Chicago’s Streeterville neighborhood because he is Black and gay. Two men — brothers Olabingo and Abimbola Osundairo — were arrested. The Chicago Police Department later said that Smollett recruited the brothers to help him stage the attack. Smollett was arrested, but the The charges were dropped by the Cook County State Attorney's Office. A special prosecutor revived the case and charged Smollett again. Smolllett has repeatedly denied the claims that he staged the attack, testifying that there was no hoax and that he was truly attacked that night. He testified that he developed a friendship with Abimbola Osundairo during the man's time on set of "Empire" as a background actor. Both brothers said that Smollett hired them to stage an attack as a ploy for public attention during the trial, noting a $3,500 check Smollett paid them. Smollett's defense said that the brothers had been taking advantage of Smollett for financial gain, and that the check was written to them for personal training services
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