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All Your Questions Near Jussie Smollett'south Indictment and Trial, Answered

Jussie Smollett. Photo: Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images

More than ii years after reporting he was attacked, Jussie Smollett is headed to trial in Chicago . Below, some of your biggest questions about the trial and his February 2020 indictment, answered.

Just when it looked as though quondam Empire star Jussie Smollett may accept dodged the criminal charges that were filed terminal year and later dropped in the controversial case in which he allegedly faked an assault, he's back in court again. This time, a Chicago grand jury indicted Smollett on six new charges equally of Tuesday, which, according to court documents, allege that the player "planned and participated" in staging a hate crime against himself.

Information technology all started later midnight on January 29, 2019, the dark Smollett says he was attacked on a Chicago street. The then-36-year-old told police force that he was browbeaten exterior of the Loews Hotel past two white men in ski masks who yelled racist and homophobic slurs, and championed "MAGA country," as they tied a rope effectually his cervix and poured bleach on him.

Due to the serious nature of the allegations, the Chicago police immediately began investigating the incident as a possible hate crime. They even tied a threatening alphabetic character that was reportedly sent to the player prior to the alleged attack to the investigation. It independent anti-gay rhetoric and a mysterious white powder.

As news broke of what many were calling a shocking hate criminal offence, many celebrities and politicians rallied behind the openly gay actor, both in the press and on social media. Former presidential candidate Kamala Harris even chosen the incident a "modernistic-day lynching," while Smollett appeared on a television interview on ABC with Robin Roberts, where he reiterated that what he told police was unequivocally true.

Information technology wasn't until February 2019, when investigators uncovered a blurry video of two men walking near the supposed criminal offence scene that the case took a very unexpected turn, one that would somewhen cast suspicion on the actor himself. By February xx, a Cook County, Illinois, grand jury plant likely cause that Smollett staged the assault. The young thespian was arrested, charged with felony disorderly bear, and released on bail shortly before being written off the hitting show Empire. Smollett was too slapped with sixteen more felony counts afterwards allegedly lying to police about the alleged hate crime.

But then on March 26, 2019, prosecutors in the example abruptly dropped all charges against the actor, leading to a lot of questions and prompting a new investigation that took a precipitous turn this week when Smollett was indicted for a second fourth dimension.

Below, we've answered some of the biggest questions almost why the case was reopened and whether Smollett could really face up jail time if convicted.

What is Smollett charged with now?
The actor is facing six new criminal charges, including that he planned and participated in the staging of a hate criminal offence and made four separate imitation reports to the Chicago Police Department.

Who opened the new case and why?
Special prosecutor Dan M. Webb, who had been investigating the case for months, helped bring the new charges in Cook County later taking over from the former land'southward attorney Kim Foxx who dropped the charges against Smollett last year. Her controversial decision shocked many and led to an unprecedented press briefing by the Chicago Police Department in which information technology blasted the determination. Webb said that he's pursuing the instance confronting Smollett because "reasonable grounds exist to further prosecute the actor."

What could happen next?
With new criminal charges filed against Smollett, he will probable face up a trial in Cook County unless he and his attorneys somehow make a deal with the prosecutors. At this time, in that location's no evidence to suggest that the district attorney would even accept a deal, especially given the high-profile nature of the example.

Some big questions to consider if there is a criminal trial is how and where Smollett would exist able to get a fair trial (this volition likely become a major talking point for the actor's legal team), what testify would be submitted (is there a video of the alleged assault?), and who ultimately would take the stand (two brothers testified to a m jury last yr that Smollett hired them to stage the attack, and in that location is video of the men buying supplies that were allegedly used in the alleged attack).

In improver to the criminal charges, Smollett as well faces a lawsuit from the City of Chicago to recover the costs of investigating "Mr. Smollett'due south false statements," according to TMZ. The actor has too since made a counterclaim against the city that is yet awaiting.

He'due south scheduled to appear in court on Feb 24.

Could Smollett terminate up in jail?
Yes. The charge for filing a fake police report is a felony in Illinois. Technically, it'due south considered a Course 4 felony, the to the lowest degree serious of all possible felony charges, but it still carries a sentence ranging from one to three years in prison and fines upward to $25,000.

If found guilty in a criminal trial, the actor could also exist forced to pay restitution for the price of the investigation, which, given the high-contour nature of the case, could be substantial.

Depending on what happens side by side, prosecutors could fifty-fifty add an obstacle-of-justice charge, which basically suggests that Smollett "knowingly" resisted or obstructed the piece of work of an investigator (this charge also carries jail time).

How has Smollett reacted to the new charges?
The role player's legal team released a statement that says, in part: "This indictment raises serious questions about the integrity of the investigation that led to the renewed charges confronting Mr. Smollett … The try to re-prosecute Mr. Smollett i yr later on the eve of the Cook County State'due south Attorney election is conspicuously all nearly politics and not justice."

So why were the first set of charges against Smollett dropped last yr?
All of the criminal charges confronting the actor were dropped as of March 26, 2019 by the Melt County Land's Attorney's Office. While the prosecutors did not reveal why exactly they dropped the felony charges, they said the determination was made after reviewing all of the facts in light of Smollett's forfeiture of his $10,000 bond. Ordinarily when charges are dropped, the bond is returned to the defendant; in this case, Smollett agreed to give the bond he paid to the urban center, which is unusual in a case like this.

"After reviewing all of the facts and circumstances of the instance," the land's attorney'southward office said in a statement at the fourth dimension, " including Mr. Smollett's volunteer service in the community, and agreement to forfeit his bail to the City of Chicago, nosotros believe this outcome is a but disposition and advisable resolution to this case."

As a result, Smollett did not face trial and had his tape expunged.

Weren't in that location 16 different charges added to his initial charges final year?
Yes. On March 8, 2019, Smollett was charged with 16 additional felony counts of hell-raising conduct for filing a false law report. The grand jury specifically returned two dissever sets of charges related to the actor'due south allegations that his supposed attackers called him racist and homophobic slurs, used a noose, and poured a chemical on him. His testimony to police immediately after the incident, besides every bit his second interview with police, had both contributed to the concluding grand jury decision in 2019, the prosecutors said.

Only all 16 of the additional charges were dropped equally well on March 26, 2019. Smollett's attorneys had as well requested and were granted that the records be sealed.

What happened to the video bear witness mentioned in the initial complaint?
Any and all evidence in this case would have been considered past the prosecutors and may have also led to the new charges existence filed. At this time, it's unclear whether any alleged video of the declared assault exists or what evidence could or will be used in a criminal trial.

Did leaks and press appearances by the Chicago Police contribute to the conclusion to drib charges the first time effectually?
Information technology probably didn't help. From the first, Smollett'due south attorneys argued that the police overstepped when they initially held a printing conference calling Smollett a criminal. His attorneys likely made the instance behind closed doors that the actor being vilified by the police and printing would have made information technology side by side to incommunicable for him to become a off-white trial.

At the fourth dimension, TMZ as well reported that the Chicago Constabulary were "furious" with the Country's conclusion to drop all of the charges. Onetime Police Superintendent Johnson said in a press conference on March 26, 2019 following the charges being dropped, "Exercise I think justice was served? No."

In the aforementioned press conference, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel also called the conclusion to drib the charges "a whitewash of justice," citing the g jury'due south conclusion to bring 16 felony charges afterward seeing "a sliver" of prove. He accused the prosecutors of treating Smollett differently from other defendants because of his fame. A calendar week later, the Chicago Police said they would be opening an investigation into the alleged leaks in this instance.

The Chicago PD also released several police reports from the case later it was appear the charges were dropped. (The reports tin be read hither and here.) They reveal, in function, that Smollett was never handcuffed, placed into a jail cell, or "subjected to the media" while he was in custody.
The reports practice non, notwithstanding, include most of the materials related to this instance. And that'south because a new court order has prevented the CPD from releasing any additional records, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said. "Nosotros were brash at ix:30 a.m. this morning [March 27] that the CPD records and investigative files are now under seal by gild of the court," he said at the fourth dimension.

Was there any backlash later the charges were dropped last year?
Yeah, at that place was criticism in both the political and legal worlds. On March 28, 2019, the Illinois Prosecutors Bar Association accused the prosecutors of having "fundamentally misled the public on the law and circumstances surrounding the dismissal," maxim that the way in which the Cook Canton Land's Attorney Kim Foxx and her role resolved the case was "aberrant."

The clan specifically said: "The appearance of impropriety here is compounded past the fact that this case was not on the regularly scheduled courtroom call, the public had no reasonable discover or opportunity to view these proceedings, and the dismissal was done abruptly at what has been called an 'emergency' hearing. To date, the nature of the purported emergency has not been publicly disclosed. The sealing of a court case immediately following a hearing where there was no reasonable notice or opportunity for the public to attend is a thing of grave public concern and undermines the very foundation of our public court system."

The prosecutor'south function was likewise criticized past the association for suggesting that somehow sealing the records in this case was mandatory. And Foxx herself had been criticized for non properly recusing herself over having a personal tie to a witness, past appointing someone inside her ain office to have over the example; legal experts said a special prosecutor should have been appointed in the case.

At that place was as well the financial expense of the case. The initial investigation price the city a lot in man hours. Equally such, the Chicago corporation counsel asked on March 28, 2019 that Smollett exist required to pay more than $130,000 for the cost of the investigation, while officials in both Illinois and the White House had even suggested there should be an investigation into why the charges were dropped in the kickoff place. State House Republican Jim Durkin asked the country's attorney full general to exercise a "thorough review," while President Trump tweeted, "FBI & DOJ to review the outrageous Jussie Smollett case in Chicago."

The FBI and Justice Department were expected to evaluate the prosecutor's interest in the case after the police union besides called for an investigation.

In addition, Republican State Representative from Chicago Michael McAuliffe introduced legislation that could prohibit whatsoever production that hires the thespian from benefiting from the Illinois Film Tax Credits. "A lot of valuable Chicago Police Section (CPD) homo hours and resources were wasted chasing downward a bogus crime arranged by Smollett," he said. "Hate crimes are serious and and so is the time and effort of the CPD. He has toll Chicago a lot more than a $10,000 bond."

Every bit to the style the instance was handled, well, the National District Attorneys Association also released a powerful statement: "The recent incident in Chicago involving histrion Jussie Smollett is no different and has garnered national attention every bit the case has made its way through various phases of the investigation and prosecution process. …While details of the case remain sealed, several observations must be made in gild to increase, not diminish, the public's confidence in the criminal justice system."

Ultimately, they advised that "when a chief prosecutor recuses him or herself, the recusal must apply to the entire office, not simply the elected or appointed prosecutor;" "prosecutors should not accept advice from politically connected friends of the accused;" "when a prosecutor seeks to resolve a example through diversion or another culling to prosecution, it should be done and then with an acknowledgement of culpability on the role of the defendant. A example with the consequential effects of Mr. Smollett's should non be resolved without a finding of guilt or innocence;" and "expunging Mr. Smollett's record at this immediate stage is counter to transparency. Law enforcement will at present not be able to admit that Mr. Smollett was indicted and charged with these horrible crimes and the total record of what occurred volition exist forever hidden from public view."

What evidence did the police say they had confronting Smollett in 2019?
During a press conference on February 21, 2019, Eddie Johnson, superintendent of the Chicago Law Section, said Smollett orchestrated and paid to stage the attack.

Showtime, he said, Smollett attempted to gain attending past sending a fake alphabetic character to himself. When that didn't work, Smollett and so paid $three,500 to two brothers, Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo, to phase the set on because, according to Johnson, Smollett "was dissatisfied with his salary" on the hit Television set show Empire.

The two brothers Smollett allegedly hired, men he knew from working on Empire, were wearing gloves and punched the player "a little chip," Johnson said. He likewise said that phone records betwixt Smollett and the two brothers show communication both before and after the staged attack.

Johnson also confirmed that the constabulary had evidence of money payment in the form of the actual cheque Smollett paid the brothers. Smollett claimed the payment was for services rendered in the class of fitness training.

How did Chicago police force come to the conclusion that Smollett orchestrated the assail?
Commander of the Chicago Constabulary Department, Edward Wodnicki, outlined the timeline of the investigation during the February 21 press conference.
He said the investigation officially began at 2 a.m. on the morning time of January 29, when Smollett first reported that he was the victim of a hate crime. The actor was initially interviewed at Northwestern Hospital.

"Jussie was not hurt," said Wodnicki, other than a few scratches on his face and some bruising. He said information technology appeared that the scratches may have been self-inflicted.

The constabulary interviewed more than 100 people in the area afterwards the supposed attack.

"We quickly found 2 persons of interest on video that nosotros believed were the probable offenders in this case," said Wodnicki. About 35 different police cameras and twenty individual-sector cameras were used to track the suspects. The two brothers seen in the video were eventually identified through a rideshare service they used to abscond the scene.

On Friday, February fifteen, 2019, after 47 hours of the brothers being in custody, and hours of interrogation, they were no longer considered suspects in the instance. Based on the show the brothers provided (including the payment from Smollett), the State Attorney's Office approved charges against the role player.

Additionally, Smollett had been reluctant to run across with investigators for a follow-up interview. And while he has every legal correct to non answer questions as per his attorney's communication, some critics argued from the kickoff that his story had holes in it, similar the forty-minute gap betwixt the supposed attack and when police were contacted.

Some other red flag for investigators early on on may have been when Smollett initially refused to turn his phone over to the police. At the time, the police were trying to establish a timeline of the attack based on Smollett's own statement that he was speaking on the phone to his manager when the alleged attack happened. Though he eventually provided redacted telephone records to investigators, it'due south unclear if any of the phone records were edited. It appears that the phone records showing advice between Smollett and the brothers came from the brothers' own phone records, which they handed over willingly.

What happened after Smollett was first charged?
Because Smollett was charged with making a false police report, a felony hell-raising conduct charge that could bring jail fourth dimension and/or monetary fines, he was booked by police and had a bail hearing on February 21.

During the hearing, Smollett faced a gauge to officially make his plea. The guess granted a bond of which Smollett was required to pay $100,000 based on the defendant not being a danger to the community or a flight gamble. (He paid 10 percent of that, as is standard.) He was too asked to surrender his passport.

How did Smollett respond afterwards beingness arrested inititally?
The Empire histrion has maintained his innocence from the starting time of the investigation. On March 14, 2019, he pled non guilty to all charges and denied whatever involvement in fabricating the attack.

On the dark of February twenty, his lawyers released a statement saying, "Similar any other citizen, Mr. Smollett enjoys the presumption of innocence, particularly when there has been an investigation similar this one where information, both true and false, has been repeatedly leaked."

They besides added: "Given these circumstances, nosotros intend to conduct a thorough investigation and to mount an aggressive defense force."

How did Smollett react after the charges were dropped?
When the charges were dropped in 2019, Smollett spoke briefly outside the courthouse. He thanked his family and friends, the people of Chicago and around the world who supported him. He added:

I've been true and consistent on every single level since day ane. … This has been an incredibly hard time. Honestly, 1 of the worst of my entire life. But I am a man of faith and a human being who has cognition of my history and would non bring my family unit, our lives and the movement through a burn like this. I just wouldn't.

He too signed autographs and said he would keep to "fight for the edification of marginalized people everywhere."

His attorneys also said in a statement, "He was a victim who was vilified and made to appear every bit a perpetrator as a effect of imitation and inappropriate remarks made to the public, causing an inappropriate rush to judgment."

The statement adds: "The entire situation is a reminder that in that location should never exist an endeavour to show a example in the court of public opinion. That is incorrect. It is a reminder that a victim, in this case, Jussie, deserves nobility and respect. Dismissal of charges against the victim in this case was the just simply event."

They said that Smollett is "relieved to have this situation backside him and is very much looking forward to getting back to focusing on his family, friends and career."

Would Smollett accept faced jail time if he'd been bedevilled in 2019?
Yes. The charge for filing a false police report is a felony in Illinois. Technically, it'south considered a Grade 4 felony, the least serious of all possible felony charges, merely information technology still carries a sentence ranging from one to three years in prison and fines up to $25,000.

In order to accept charged Smollett, the investigators needed to prove to the grand jury that he knowingly lied to police most the incident, which resulted in a false police force report. The actor could too have been forced to pay restitution for the price of the investigation, which, given the loftier-profile nature of the case, could have been substantial.

Equally this example moved forrad, prosecutors may also have been considered adding an obstruction of justice charge, which basically would have meant that Smollett would take stood defendant of "knowingly" resisting or obstructing the work of an investigator. This could take likewise carried jail fourth dimension.

The 16 boosted charges that were added (and since dropped) each also carried upwards to iv years in jail or probation.

At that point, one of the best-example scenarios for the actor at the time would accept been to plead to a misdemeanor to avert prison house time. But again, given the high-contour nature of the case, a judge may non take been been so lenient every bit to take the plea. Smollett could have ended upwards facing a very public criminal trial. Even before he was formally charged, he hired two criminal-defense attorneys, Victor Henderson and Todd Pugh, who said they intended to vigorously defend their client against all charges.

What about the threatening letter Smollett says he received last twelvemonth?
Johnson said during the original press conference on February 21, 2019, that the constabulary believed Smollett did fabricate the letter of the alphabet. Both the FBI and U.S. Postal inspectors were investigating the letter, which said, "Y'all will die black faggot," in cut-out magazine letters. It also featured a stick figure hanging from a tree.

At this point information technology's unclear if Smollett will face whatever charges for the letter since the new charges were filed. If charges are brought, Smollett could exist charged with federal mail fraud, which carries its ain set of criminal charges beyond what he is already facing in the land of Illinois. To be convicted of mail fraud, a prosecutor would need to prove that the actor intended to perform a fraudulent human action and that he used the mail purposely to execute information technology.

Charges for beingness convicted of mail fraud range from fines up to $250,000 to prison time up to 20 years. Other lesser options include probation or even making restitution. The penalization really depends on the severity of the case and the criminal history of the person or persons involved.

What happens when someone is charged with a felony?
A felony remains on a person'south criminal record for the duration of his life. It may forbid him from certain things, like beingness able to vote or even run for and hold political part. Felons are too disqualified from jury duty for at least seven years. Felons are besides unable to own firearms.

In improver, felons risk losing permits or licenses for work depending on the nature of the crime. Every bit a convicted felon, Smollett could be denied blessing as a foster or adoptive parent. He would also very probable serve jail time, pay fines, or be put on probation. Information technology will ultimately depend on a judge's discretion and the seriousness of the charges.

Has Smollett had any other trouble with the law?
In 2007, Smollett pleaded no contest to iii misdemeanor counts related to a DUI in Los Angeles. Ane of the counts was, interestingly, giving false information to the law.

The actor reportedly gave police force a false name when he was arrested, that of his brother Jake. As such, he was charged with false impersonation, too as driving under the influence and driving without a license. He was sentenced to three years' probation. He also completed a mandatory booze-treatment plan.

What'south happened to Smollett'southward career since the alleged attack?
His bosses at Empire initially "removed" the actor's character Jamal at the end of last season. At the time, Chris Alexander, a spokesperson for 20th Century Fob Television and the Fox network that produces the striking show, said in a argument, "Jussie Smollett has always maintained his innocence and we are gratified that all charges against him have been dismissed." There accept been no further comments from the network since the case has been reopened.

Smollett hasn't been active on his official social-media accounts for quite some fourth dimension. His terminal Twitter post was in early 2019, and he hasn't posted to Instagram since June 2019. He's retreated from public life with no news about either his singing or acting career.

This piece has been updated throughout to contain data near the new criminal charges filed against Smollett.

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