Jussie Smollett: prosecutors drop charges against actor accused of fabricating

[garbon]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/mar/26/jussie-smollett-charges-dropped-latest-news-maga-attack-lies-accusations-empire-actor

Prosecutors agreed Tuesday to drop criminal charges against Empire actor Jussie Smollett for faking a hate crime attack in Chicago.

Smollett was charged with 16 counts of felony disorderly conduct for allegedly hiring two men to stage the racist, homophobic attack against him in downtown Chicago earlier this year.

Smollett spoke out after the surprise development in a case that has generated more questions than answers.

"I have been truthful and consistent on every single level since day one. I would not be my mother's son if I was capable of one drop of what I've been accused of," Smollett said Tuesday.

"This has been an incredibly difficult time, honestly one of the worst of my entire life," he said. But I am a man of faith, and I am a man that has knowledge of my history, and I would not bring my family, our lives or the movement through a fire like this. I just wouldn't."

Smollett, who is gay and black, said he was walking home from a sandwich shop in downtown Chicago around 2am on 29 January when two men approached him, shouting racist and homophobic slurs, beat him up, poured bleach on him and looped a rope around his neck.

He claimed the attackers said, "This is Maga country," referring to Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" election campaign slogan.

Chicago police said he faked the attack because he was unhappy about his salary and wanted to drum up publicity to help his career, accusing him of taking advantage of the pain and anger of racism to promote himself.

Smollett has maintained his innocence and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

A judge agreed at a brief court hearing on Tuesday to prosecutors' request to dismiss the charges, the Chicago Tribune reported, and ordered the case file sealed.

"After reviewing all of the facts and circumstances of the case, including Mr. Smollet's volunteer service in the community and agreement to forfeit his bond to the City of Chicago, we believe this outcome is a just disposition and appropriate resolution to this case," the Cook County state's attorney's office said in statement to the paper.

Smollett agreed to forfeit the $10,000 he has paid on a $100,000 bond, said his lawyer Patricia Brown Holmes.

"It was the correct result in this case. We're very happy for this result, and we are very anxious for Jussie to get on with his career and his life," she said.

Many questions remain unanswered about the incident. Police have said Smollett paid two brothers $3,500 to stage the attack. Smollett's lawyers said the payment was for nutrition and personal training services.

Chicago police did not immediately comment, but a source told the Chicago Sun Times superintendent Eddie Johnson was "furious" and maintained the evidence against Smollett was "rock solid".

[viper37]

He's exonerated.  Just like Trump.

[crazy canuck]

The Times is reporting that he had to forfeit his bond to obtain the deal.  Based on that it sounds like the prosecutors decided it was not worth prosecuting and took the bond money as compensation for the unnecessary expense of responding to the allegations he had been assaulted.

[derspiess]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

[Valmy]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

Um...this response makes no sense. Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there. This seems like a perfectly good way to save government time and money. So what is funny about it? What do you think should have happened?

[garbon]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

Um...this response makes no sense. Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there. This seems like a perfectly good way to save government time and money. So what is funny about it? What do you think should have happened?

Seems like pay enough money and you get away free.

[Valmy]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

Um...this response makes no sense. Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there. This seems like a perfectly good way to save government time and money. So what is funny about it? What do you think should have happened?

Seems like pay enough money and you get away free.

Sure but it was a victimless crime right? So spend lots of state money and what would have been the possible likely result?

[viper37]

Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there.

no, no, we live in the Post Trump era now.  As long as you don't go to prison, you are totally innocent.

[viper37]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

Um...this response makes no sense. Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there. This seems like a perfectly good way to save government time and money. So what is funny about it? What do you think should have happened?

Seems like pay enough money and you get away free.

Sure but it was a victimless crime right? So spend lots of state money and what would have been the possible likely result?

The likely result would have been a fine, probably to close to the amount of money he forfeited with his bond.  So yeah, good call here.

[Admiral Yi]

I agree that the underlying crime was victimless and all, but I would have liked to have seen a lying to police charge stick.

[derspiess]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

Um...this response makes no sense. Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there. This seems like a perfectly good way to save government time and money. So what is funny about it? What do you think should have happened?

I guess I should be happy about this.  Sorry

I mean, he only wasted 1000 police man hours and 40 detectives were pulled off other cases to investigate his case.  Hoaxes like this also make it more difficult for actual victims.  Prosecuting his case might help discourage others from such hoaxes.  But yeah, let's break out the party hats and confetti because Chicago saved some time & money by letting him go.

[derspiess]

The likely result would have been a fine, probably to close to the amount of money he forfeited with his bond.  So yeah, good call here.

It was 16 felony counts. 

Edit: from what I googled, each one could have been worth 1-3 years in prison and up to $3000 fine.

[garbon]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

Um...this response makes no sense. Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there. This seems like a perfectly good way to save government time and money. So what is funny about it? What do you think should have happened?

I guess I should be happy about this.  Sorry

I mean, he only wasted 1000 police man hours and 40 detectives were pulled off other cases to investigate his case.  Hoaxes like this also make it more difficult for actual victims.  Prosecuting his case might help discourage others from such hoaxes.  But yeah, let's break out the party hats and confetti because Chicago saved some time & money by letting him go.

Oddly enough, what D said.

[HVC]

  Gotta love Chicago. 

Hope he finds the real assailants.

Um...this response makes no sense. Chicago is not saying that he was innocent or that there are real assailants out there. This seems like a perfectly good way to save government time and money. So what is funny about it? What do you think should have happened?

Seems like pay enough money and you get away free.

Sure but it was a victimless crime right? So spend lots of state money and what would have been the possible likely result?

People are going on about how Chicago PD* is corrupt and tried to frame him. Gotta love twitter


*I mean its true, but in this case Jussie still did it

[Admiral Yi]

Another non-joke crime is false charges.

Not a good move judge.