Appeals Court in Illinois Will Hear Arguments on Jussie Smollett’s Request to Toss Convictions

Jussie Smollett’s drawn out legal saga begins anew Tuesday when an Illinois appeals court will hear oral arguments that the former “Empire” actor’s convictions for staging a racist, homophobic attack against himself in 2019 and then lying about it to Chicago police should be tossed.

If the appeal before the Chicago-based First District Appellate Court fails, Smollett would have to finish a 150-day stint in jail that his trial judge ordered during his 2022 sentencing. Smollett spent just six days in jail before his release pending the outcome of the appeal. A ruling is expected to take several weeks.

Among a long list of arguments in the 76-page written appeal from Smollett’s lawyers is that his 2021 trial violated his Fifth Amendment protections against double jeopardy — being punished for the same crime twice. It says he already performed community service and forfeited a $10,000 bond as part of a 2019 deal with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office to drop the initial charges.

Read the source article at AP News