It looks like notorious hate-crime-hoaxer Jussie Smollett won’t be serving time for his crimes just yet. A court has ordered Smollett to be released from jail on bond as his appeal is pending.
On Thursday, Smollett was sentenced to 150 days in jail, $120,000 in restitution, and a $25,000 fine after a five-hour-long sentencing ordeal. PJMedia’s own Megan Fox watched enthusiastically the entire time, not once complaining about how ridiculously long it took.
Before being taken away to serve his time, Smollett comically declared, “I am not suicidal! If anything happens to me when I go in there I did not do it to myself.”
Smollett was convicted on five felony counts of disorderly conduct for lying to police back in December. However, he maintains his innocence despite the overwhelming evidence against him.
Smollett’s attorneys succeeded in getting him released on bond by arguing that Jussie would have completed his sentence by the time the appeals process was complete and suggesting that Jussie could be at risk of danger or physical harm while at Cook County Jail.
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Since his incarceration, his family has been desperately making pleas to have him released. On Tuesday, his lawyers claimed Smollett and his family had been the targets of “vicious threats” on social media. They argued that these threats “no doubt reflects the hatred and wish for physical harm toward Smollett, which he may experience during incarceration.” They also claimed he has a “compromised immune system” and could die of COVID-19. 🙄
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