The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday reversed a hate crime hoax conviction against Jussie Smollett. The actor was found guilty of orchestrating a fake racist and homophobic attack on himself and providing false information to police.
"Today we resolve a question about the State's responsibility to honor the agreements it makes with defendants," the court wrote in documents obtained by Fox News."Specifically, we address whether a dismissal of a case by nolle prosequi allows the State to bring a second prosecution when the dismissal was entered as part of an agreement with the defendant and the defendant has performed his part of the bargain. We hold that a second prosecution under these circumstances is a due process violation, and we therefore reverse defendant's conviction."
Smollett, who is Black and gay, alleged that he had been attacked by two men wearing ski masks. Not only did they hurl racial and homophobic slurs, but also placed a noose around his neck. The claim sparked an international uproar and prompted an extensive investigation by Chicago police. At the time, Smollett was starring in the television drama Empire, filmed in Chicago. Prosecutors later accused him of staging the attack out of frustration with the studio's response to hate mail he had received.
"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," Justice Elizabeth Rochford wrote in the 5-0 decision. "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."
According to the testimony at his trial, Smollett allegedly paid $3,500 to two men he knew from Empire to stage the attack. However, he pleaded not guilty, testifying that "there was no hoax" and claiming he was the victim of a hate crime in his Chicago neighborhood.
He was sentenced to 150 days in jail—serving six days before being released pending appeal—along with 30 months of probation and a restitution payment of approximately $130,000.
Later, his conviction was upheld by a state appellate court, ruling that no guarantee was made that he wouldn't face further prosecution after accepting his original plea deal.
