Illinois appeals court hears arguments on Jussie Smollett request to toss convictions

Jussie Smollett's lawyers told an Illinois appellate court Tuesday it should toss the former “Empire” actor’s convictions for staging a racist, homophobic attack against himself in 2019 and then lying about it to Chicago police, arguing that anger over the case led to properly dismissed charges being improperly restored.

Smollett, forgoing his usual three-piece suits in favor of a casual jacket and jeans — slipped into court for the hourlong oral arguments Tuesday and sat on spectator benches. He seemed to listen intently, leaning forward to follow the debate before the three-judge panel.

One of his lawyers, Nenye Uche, told the panel that “public outrage” should not be allowed to override "the rule of law." He said many of the issues surrounding the appeal boil down to the question: “Is it fair?”

If the appeal before the Chicago-based First District Appellate Court fails, Smollett will have to finish a 150-day stint in jail that his trial judge ordered during his 2022 sentencing. Smollett spent just 6 days in jail before his release pending the outcome of the appeal. A ruling is expected to take several weeks.

Among a long list of arguments in Smollett's 76-page written appeal is that his 2021 trial violated his Fifth Amendment protections against double jeopardy — being punished for the same crime twice. It says he already performed community service and forfeited a $10,000 bond as part of a 2019 deal with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office to drop the initial charges.

Smollett, who is Black and gay, was the target of a racist justice system and people playing politics, Uche told reporters last year. Uche criticized special prosecutor Dan Webb’s decision to press for new charges in 2020. He also called the trial judge's sentence excessive for a low-level felony.