Jussie Smollett given 150 days in jail and $120,000 fine for staging hate crime

American actor was convicted of lying to police about racist and homophobic attack he staged

Jussie Smollett stands at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse in Chicago during his sentencing. EPA

American actor Jussie Smollett was sentenced to 30 months of probation on Thursday, with the first 150 days in jail for lying to Chicago police about a racist and homophobic attack he staged himself.

"You’re just a charlatan pretending to be a victim of a hate crime, and that’s shameful,” said Judge James Linn of Cook County in Chicago.

He was also ordered to pay ordered to pay $120,000 restitution for lying to police.

Smollett's request to dismiss the conviction was denied, and he did not speak before the sentencing.

The verdict came after a trial in which prosecutors presented evidence that Smollett had planned the attack and hired two men he knew from his work on the show Empire to carry it out.

He arrived at the Cook County Courthouse Thursday afternoon, flanked by family members and his lawyers.

Smollett had faced up to three years in prison for each of his five felony convictions for disorderly conduct — the charge filed for lying to police. He was acquitted on a sixth count.

The sheer size and scope of the police investigation was a major part of the trial and is key in a $130,000 pending lawsuit that the city filed against Smollett to recover the cost of police overtime.

Thursday’s sentencing could be the final chapter in a criminal case, subject to an appeal, that made international headlines.

Smollett, who is black and gay, reported to police that two men wearing ski masks had beaten him and hurled racial and homophobic slurs at him on a dark Chicago street.

In December, hr was convicted in a trial that included evidence from two brothers who told jurors Smollett paid them to carry out the attack, gave them money for ski masks and rope and instructed them to fashion the rope into a noose.

Prosecutors said he told them what racist and homophobic slurs to shout and to yell that Smollett was in “Maga Country” — a reference to the campaign slogan of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, "Make America Great Again".

Smollett, who knew the men from his work on the TV show Empire, which was filmed in Chicago, said that he did not recognise them and did not know they were the men attacking him.

Actor Jussie Smollett arrives with his mother Janet at a Chicago court on December 1. The former 'Empire' actor is accused of lying to police when he reported he was the victim of a racist, anti-gay attack in downtown Chicago nearly three years ago. AP

A courtroom sketch of Smollett taking the stand in his defense on December 6. AP

A sketch showing Smollett being questioned by his defense attorney Nenye Uche. AP

Smollett raises his fist as he enters the Leighton Criminal Courthouse for the fifth day of his trial on December 6. EPA

Smollett's case took an unexpected turn in the spring of 2019 when the Cook County state's attorney's office dropped a 16-count indictment against him. AFP

Attorney Gloria Schmidt Rodriguez, centre, walks with her clients Abimbola Osundairo, left, and Olabinjo Osundairo. The brothers claim Smollett paid them to stage the attack. AP

Actor Jussie Smollett's defense attorney Nenye Uche. AP

Special prosecutor Dan Webb. AP

Jussie Smollett's brother Jojo, who read a statement to reporters outside the courthouse on November 30. AP

Smollett is charged with six counts of felony disorderly conduct for making what prosecutors say was a false police report about the alleged attack – one count for each time he gave a report – to three different officers. The Class 4 felony carries a prison sentence of up to three years. EPA

A still image from surveillance video, released by Chicago Police in 2019, shows what they said were two persons of interest in their investigation into an assault of Smollett. Reuters

Jussie Smollett after his arrest by Chicago police in 2019. AP

Smollett speaking at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse in Chicago on March 26, 2019, after prosecutors dropped all charges against him. AP

The dismissal of Smollett's case in 2019 drew criticism from then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the city's police superintendent, who called the reversal a miscarriage of justice. An investigation later revived the case, which has been hampered by the coronavirus pandemic. AP

Smollett, from left, with Bryshere Gray, Taraji P Henson and Terrence Howard in a scene from 'Empire'. Photo: Fox Broadcasting

From left: Trai Byers as Andre Lyon, Taraji Henson as Cookie Lyon, Terrence Howard as Lucious Lyon, Jussie Smollett as Jamal Lyon and Trai Byers as Andre Lyon. Photo: Fox Broadcasting