SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Lawyers for Jussie Smollett appealed his conviction to the Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday morning.
The former “Empire” actor was convicted of falsely reporting a hate crime against him in Chicago in 2019.
In 2021, he was found guilty of five counts of disorderly conduct for setting up the attack, which he claimed two men assaulted him on a Chicago street.
Smollett, who is black and gay, said the attackers shouted racist and homophobic slurs at him before putting a noose around his neck.
Testimony at his trial indicated Smollett paid two men $3500 to carry out the attack. He knew the men from the set of the show “Empire.”
Smollett was sentenced to 150 days in jail, 30 months of probation, and ordered to pay more than $130,000 in restitution.
So far, he has served six days of that sentence.
The Appellate Court of Illinois denied Smollett’s request to toss his conviction in December of last year.
On Tuesday, Smollett did not appear with his attorneys at the hearing in Springfield.
His attorneys argued he should have never faced charges he was convicted on because Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office dismissed the original charges in exchange for community service and Smollett forfeiting his $10,000 bond.
Smollett’s attorney said the actor is the victim of a racist judicial system and the second trial, when he was convicted, should have never happened because he had a deal with the state’s attorney.
The appellate court disagreed and ruled despite the original charges being dropped, there was never an agreement that the charges couldn’t be reintroduced.
It will take some time for the Illinois Supreme Court to make their decision.