Jussie Smollett Found Guilty For Staging Fake Hate Crime

A verdict was reached in the Jussie Smollett criminal trial Thursday. The case has been ongoing for nearly three years after the actor reported that he was attacked by two men.

Smollett claimed that two brothers beat him up, tied a noose around his neck and doused him in bleach on a freezing night in January 2019. The brothers claimed that Smollett orchestrated  the hate crime, and Smollett paid them to fake the attack.

Smollett testified that he was the victim of a real hate crime, telling jurors “there was no hoax.” He called the brothers “liars” and said the $3,500 check he wrote for them was for meal and workout plans. His attorneys argued that the brothers attacked the actor because they are homophobic and didn’t like “who he was.” They also alleged the brothers made up the story about the attack being staged to get money from Smollett, and that they said they wouldn’t testify against him if Smollett paid them each $1 million.

The jury has found him guilty.