Notorious and convicted hate-hoaxer Jussie Smollett has been sentenced today to 150 days in jail, $120,000 in restitution, and a $25,000 fine. Before Smollett was taken away he started yelling, “I am not suicidal! If anything happens to me when I go in there I did not do it to myself.”
“I did not do this,” he continued.
Judge James Linn denied the defense’s motion for a new trial. He also denied the motion to stay the sentence until appeal. “I am not staying this,” said the judge. “This happens right here right now.” Smollett was led out of the court by police with his fist raised in the air.
Jussie Smollett is a terrible actor. His name is now synonymous with telling lies. Here he is, claiming he is not suicidal. pic.twitter.com/ADtrup8ood
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) March 11, 2022
Judge Linn tore into Smollett during his sentencing and said that for a person with his background in social justice to now be sitting in front of him convicted of faking a hate crime, “the hypocrisy is just astounding.” Judge Linn also denied that this was a crime of impulse and told Smollett that he had premeditated his crime. “You did wake up in the morning thinking you were going to do something bad and wrong,” he said. “You paid them in advance by check. You chose a date, you chose a time, you had props prepared…and then you did rehearsals!”
Judge Linn continued going over every detail of the faked hate crime in painstaking detail. “I repeat,” said the judge after describing the events. “You put the noose around your own neck. You caused great distress throughout the city and the community…that’s why we are here now.”
“I thought the jury’s verdict was accurate and correct,” said Judge Linn. He also berated Smollett for using public officials like Kamala Harris and Don Lemon among others to spread his false narrative, saying Smollet has displayed “arrogance, selfishness, and narcissism that’s just disgraceful.”
“What you did because you were selfishly, arrogantly, narcissistically bringing attention to yourself…took away resources from real victims,” Linn continued. “You’re not a victim of a hate crime.”
“The damage you’ve done to yourself is way beyond what could be done by me or any other judge. You are a permanently convicted felon,” he said. “You’ve embarrassed your important friends who are public officials…you’ve become toxic in your workplace.”
“You’ve turned yourself into riches to rags. You’re the butt of jokes. They make jokes about you. I can’t imagine anything worse than that. This is all self-inflicted,” continued Linn. “I don’t think there is anything funny at all about hoaxing and faking racial hate crimes. I think that is disgraceful.”
“Your performance on the witness stand can only be described as pure perjury. I find all those to be ample factors,” he said before issuing the sentence.
#JussieSmollett will not get a new trial. Motion denied. pic.twitter.com/tUMx06dj96
— No, not THAT Megan Fox 🦊 (@MeganFoxWriter) March 10, 2022
After keeping the press waiting until the last possible minute, Smollett arrived at his sentencing one minute after it was supposed to start and walked slowly with his 92-year-old grandmother to the courtroom where his fate awaited him. On the way into the courthouse, one of Smollett’s bodyguards knocked a photographer to the ground.
Jussie Smollett's bodyguards throw a reporter to the ground as Smollett approaches the courthouse for his sentencing. pic.twitter.com/HmmwzZSfSN
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) March 10, 2022
During the sentencing hearing, the defense attempted to accuse the judge, the prosecutor, the jury, and anyone else they could think of of misconduct. But the prosecution made them look silly. Everyone knows what happened here. Jussie lied.
This guy 👏 "Facts matter, truth matters, evidence matters. They are not entitled to their own facts…They're arguments are not getting better with age." #JussieSmollett pic.twitter.com/WIPVXCNziW
— No, not THAT Megan Fox 🦊 (@MeganFoxWriter) March 10, 2022
After another trial was denied, the prosecution submitted evidence of aggravation from the Chicago police department that asked for restitution in the amount of $130,000 to recover the costs of the investigation. Police said that the investigation during a polar vortex and some of the coldest nights in Chicago history caused “overwhelming stress and fatigue” to the officers involved. The statement went on to say that the true cost of the false report created a “tremendous chilling effect on real victims of hate crimes.”
The prosecution argued that Smollett had “never taken responsibility” for his crime and had not offered “a single act of contrition” during the two years the case dragged on. Dan Webb quoted a Supreme Court case directing sentencing judges to take into consideration “an unmitigated liar at continual war with society.” As he said it, Smollett’s lawyer to the left of Webb looked like she was going to be sick.
"An unmitigated liar at war with society," describes #JussieSmollett perfectly. pic.twitter.com/D0oiXFPivK
— No, not THAT Megan Fox 🦊 (@MeganFoxWriter) March 10, 2022
The defense brought forward the musical director of the show “Empire,” Lee Daniels, to regale the judge and television audience with tales of Smollett’s charity work. He told stories of how Smollett makes children cry (supposedly with happiness) when he walks into a room. It was a bit much. “He was the music star of the show,” he said. Then came Sharon Gellman, who ran a non-profit in the arts, who called Smollett an “utterly beautiful young man.” Gellman said she wanted people to know the “Jussie I know,” and then told the court that Smollett often volunteered with her and then took a job as an assistant and did a bad job. “Jussie has many talents. Paperwork is not one of them,” she said.
Juicy did community service when he was 16. I rest my case. Wtf who cares? I did community service when I was 16. I didn't realize that means I shouldn't go to jail for crimes as an adult. #JussieSmollett
— Adam ✝️🇺🇸 (@adam_antill) March 10, 2022
Smollett’s brother got up and read a statement asking for leniency, claiming we’re all tired of the pandemic, the war, and economic disaster, none of which he said are Smollett’s fault. “Jussie should not be incarcerated,” he said. “He is not a threat to the people of Illinois.” The people of Illinois who were falsely accused of being MAGA terrorists might disagree. He then went on to claim that incarcerating Smollett would be racist and an “unnecessary burden to the taxpayers.” The public bearing the burden of Smollett’s jail time might be the only argument that makes sense to anyone (but I think we could absorb it). “The punishment he has already received has far exceeded” the crime, said Smollet’s brother while also adding that he doesn’t believe any of it and he didn’t do it.
Smollett’s grandmother said to the media, “you haven’t done a good job.” She continued, “Jussie is what I call a justice warrior.” Then she turned to the judge after invoking her Jewish heritage and tales of marching with civil rights leaders and said “If you do send him to prison, please send me along with him.”
Oh, hoooooney, they playing the #gay #black #jewish #race card with this #JussieSmollett 'be nice to him judge' sentencing!
— gay. conservative. american. man. (@thatgayconserv) March 10, 2022
Granny is embarrassing herself, send her to jail too…#JussieSmollett
— Harold James (@Harold_JamesNY) March 10, 2022
Black Lives Matter, whose leaders are currently under investigation for tax fraud, also gave a statement asking for a lighter sentence for Smollett. Their comments included strange claims like: Smollett helped stop AIDS in Africa and fixed the water in Flint, Mich., with a charity appearance. It’s unknown if he’s cured cancer yet.
The Innocence Project sent in a letter too, but I have to admit that at this point, I started blacking out after sitting at my desk for three and a half hours without a bathroom or water break. The sentencing at this point had begun to feel as if it had already been meted out on the audience who were punished for tuning in.
I think I've spent more time watching this sentencing than Jussie will spend in jail. #JussieSmollett
— Mickey Mouth 😷 (@MickeyMouth1) March 10, 2022
Several more letters were then read by Hollywood award winners and hangers-on who beatified Smollett and attempted to convince us that he is the second coming of Jesus Christ, but the black Jewish gay version.
Smollett’s outrageous lies alarmed the city of Chicago and the world. Police discovered that Smollett hired two brothers to wear red hats and attack him on a city street in the middle of a polar vortex while shouting racial slurs and screaming “This is MAGA country!” in order to make people believe he was attacked by white Trump supporters.
Abimbola Osundairo and his brother, Olabinjo Osundairo, also testified against Smollett and told the jury that Smollett paid them $3,500 to fake the attack. Smollett alleged during the trial that he had a sexual relationship with one of the brothers, Abimbola, who denied any romantic involvement.
Smollett was charged and convicted of disorderly conduct and lying to the police.
Smollett’s claims of the fake attack sparked a huge investigation that cost the city of Chicago over $100,000 and thousands of hours in manpower. Chicago leaders were furious that those resources went to help a hoaxer, and they threw their full weight behind his prosecution. When Smollett reported the “attack” on Jan. 29, 2019, it lead to a large-scale investigation that police say included at least two dozen officers and 3,000 staff hours.
On the way into the courtroom on Thursday, one of Smollett’s supporters was spotted wearing a hoodie that said, “Racists Go to Hell.”
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