Hate Crime Hoax

On Thursday, a Cook County Circuit Court sentenced US actor Jussie Smollett to 150 days behind bars and 30 months of probation for falsely reporting to authorities that he was the victim of a racist and homophobic attack in January 2019. Smollett, who is biracial and gay, had been found guilty of five counts of felony disorderly conduct.

Attorneys for Jussie Smollett, 39, plan to appeal the former "Empire" star's sentence, following claims that the court "made numerous trial errors leading up to the trial and during the pendency of the trial."

Smollett, who was immediately taken to jail after his Thursday sentencing, will remain behind bars during the appeal, per Cook County Circuit Judge James Linn.

Jussie Smollett after the sentencing: “I am not suicidal. If anything happens to me when I go in there, you must all know that.” pic.twitter.com/xe2wYpQJ4O

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) March 11, 2022

The 39-year-old initially claimed that two men left a noose around his neck after a brutal assault involving chemicals and the hurling of homophobic and racist slurs. While it is now known that the alleged attack in Chicago's Streeterville neighborhood did not take place as described, a representative for Smollett told CNN that "everything is up in the air" regarding a possible return to TV and film.