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Jussie Smollett is off the hook after allegedly staging a fake hate crime.
On Thursday (November 21), Smollett's conviction in the hate crime hoax case was overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court, per TMZ. A special prosecutor had decided to retry Smollett after the Cook County State Attorney's Office initially dropped all the charges against him — a move the Illinois Supreme Court ruled violated his rights.
“We are aware that this case has generated significant public interest and that many people were dissatisfied with the resolution of the original case and believed it to be unjust,” the justices wrote in their opinion.
“Nevertheless,” the opinion continued, “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 hate crime hoax case stemmed from Smollett's claims in 2019 that masked Donald Trump supporters yelled racial slurs, poured bleach on him, and wrapped a rope around his neck. However, the Chicago Police Department found no evidence of the attack.
In December 2021, Smollett was convicted on five felony counts for staging a hate crime. He struck a plea deal to forfeit his $10,000 bond and complete 15 community service hours, which he finished.
Smollett was later prosecuted and sentenced in March 2022 to 150 days in county jail. He was released early as his lawyers appealed the special prosecution. In the process, Smollett repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
In a statement, Smollett's lawyer, Nenye Uche, praised the Illinois Supreme Court's decision to overturn his conviction.
"This was not a prosecution based on facts, rather it was a vindictive persecution and such a proceeding has no place in our criminal justice system. Ultimately, we are pleased that the rule of law was the big winner today," Uche said.
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