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Jussie Smollett found guilty of falsely reporting a hate crime

By Melissa Mahtani and Fernando Alfonso III, CNN

Updated 9:46 PM ET, Thu December 9, 2021
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6:27 p.m. ET, December 9, 2021

Jussie Smollett found guilty on 5 of 6 counts of felony disorderly conduct

From CNN's Omar Jimenez

(Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service/Getty Images)
(Jose M. Osorio/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service/Getty Images)

Jussie Smollett has been found guilty on five counts of felony disorderly conduct by a Chicago jury for making false reports to police that he was the victim of a hate crime in January 2019.

Smollett was also acquitted on one count of felony disorderly conduct.

Smollett took the stand and testified before the jury that he never lied to police and denied orchestrating the attack on himself.

Prosecutors sought to show that the former “Empire” actor made false reports to police after paying Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo to carry out a staged hate crime attack against him to garner sympathetic media coverage.

A disorderly conduct charge for a false crime report is a Class 4 felony and punishable by up to three years in prison and a $25,000 fine. Cook County Judge James Linn will have discretion in imposing a concurrent or consecutive sentence for each count at a later date.

6:18 p.m. ET, December 9, 2021

NOW: Verdict being read in Jussie Smollett trial

The verdict is being read in the trial of Jussie Smollett.

The former "Empire" actor was charged with six counts of disorderly conduct on suspicion of making false reports to police that he was a victim of a hate crime in early 2019.

He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

6:11 p.m. ET, December 9, 2021

Jussie Smollett arrives at the courthouse

Former "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett has just arrived at the courthouse where a verdict will soon be read.

Smollett faces six counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly making false reports to police that he was a victim of a hate crime in early 2019. The former "Empire" actor has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has repeatedly denied making up or orchestrating the attack.

5:52 p.m. ET, December 9, 2021

Jury deliberated for more than 9 hours before reaching a verdict

A verdict has been reached in the trial of Jussie Smollett, according to Mary Wisniewski, director of communications for the Office of the Chief Judge of the Cook County Circuit Court. 

The jury of six men and six women deliberated for more than nine hours, two hours on Wednesday and about seven hours on Thursday.

The trial, which began last week, stems from an incident nearly three years ago when Smollett, who is Black and gay, told police two men attacked him late one night by his Chicago apartment. The mystery suspects called him anti-gay and racist slurs, put a noose around his neck, poured bleach on him and exclaimed, "This is MAGA country," he told police.

Smollett faces six counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly making false reports to police that he was a victim of a hate crime in early 2019. The former "Empire" actor has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has repeatedly denied making up or orchestrating the attack.

5:24 p.m. ET, December 9, 2021

Jury has reached a verdict in the trial of Jussie Smollett

From CNN's Brad Parks

A verdict has been reached in the trial of Jussie Smollett, according to Mary Wisniewski, director of communications for the Office of the Chief Judge of the Cook County Circuit Court. 

"There is a verdict in the Jussie Smollett case,” Wisniewski said in an email to CNN. 

The notice from the court did not specify an exact time the verdict will be read.

The panel of six men and six women began deliberating about 10:10 a.m. ET on Thursday. They deliberated for roughly two hours and 20 minutes on Wednesday. 

Smollett faces six counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly making false reports to police that he was a victim of a hate crime in early 2019. The former "Empire" actor has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has repeatedly denied making up or orchestrating the attack.

5:30 p.m. ET, December 9, 2021

Here's some of what Jussie Smollett said during his testimony

From CNN's Omar Jimenez and Eric Levenson

Former "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett took the stand in his ongoing criminal trial Monday and Tuesday in a high-stakes attempt to rebut charges that he staged a fake hate crime and lied to Chicago Police about it in January 2019.

  • Smollett suggested the brothers – whom he knew from the "Empire" set – may have had other motivations at play: He said Abimbola Osundairo, who he called "Bon," helped him get drugs, including cocaine. He also said a sexual relationship began to forge between the two at a particular Chicago bath house. One night the two were out, and Smollett testified they got a private room and "did more drugs and like, made out."
  • What Smollett told jurors about his relationship with Abimbola Osundairo: He said the two snuck away from his brother after the three were at a female strip club together. Smollett testified they again got a private room and "made out a little bit, masturbated together." In testimony last week, Abimbola Osundairo denied they had a sexual relationship and said he "didn't know" there was even any sexual tension.
  • Smollett said he wasn't friendly at all with Olabinjo Osundairo: "He kind of creeped me out," Smollett told jurors. "Every time we were around him, he didn't speak to me. Every time we needed to leave, he made it seem like we needed to sneak off."
  • Smollett testified a "hate letter" was sent to the "Empire" set: After a "hate letter" was sent to Smollett in the mail at the "Empire" studio in Chicago on Jan. 22, 2019 – seven days before the alleged attack – Smollett said Abimbola Osundairo approached him about becoming his personal security guard, something the actor told the jury Osundairo had repeatedly asked him. Following the letter, Abimbola Osundairo began asking him more about the need for security, Smollett said. The actor described being annoyed at the idea of always having a security detail around him.
  • Smollett denied that the attack was a 'hoax": "Around lunch time I would smoke my blunt, drive around the neighborhood of the studios. I don't want to be in someone's car," Smollett said. Smollett told the jury that while driving around with Abimbola Osundairo, there was never any discussion of planning a staged hate attack. "Did you talk to him about some hoax?" defense attorney Nenye Uche asked. "No," Smollett shot back. "Did you give him the check as payment for some silly hoax?" Uche then asked."Never," Smollett said.

Some more context: Last week, brothers Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo testified that Smollett, who is Black and gay, directed and paid them to carry out a sham anti-gay and racist attack in order to garner sympathetic media coverage. Their testimony, as well as that of five Chicago police investigators, formed the core of the prosecution's case against Smollett.

5:35 p.m. ET, December 9, 2021

The trial concluded Tuesday after 5 days of testimony and 14 witnesses

Testimony concluded on Tuesday in the trial of Jussie Smollett after the defense rested and prosecutors declined to call any rebuttal witnesses. 

During more than five days of testimony in the trial, jurors heard from 14 witnesses.

Judge James Linn told the court closing statements are scheduled to begin tomorrow morning.

The judge told jurors "the matter will be in your hands tomorrow" but not to make any assumptions about how long things would take from there.

"Maybe something short, something long, something in between," Linn said. "We're almost there."

Smollett faces six counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly making false reports to police that he was a victim of a hate crime in early 2019. The former "Empire" actor has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has repeatedly denied making up or orchestrating the attack.