Jussie Smollett wants Illinois Supreme Court to overturn his convictions

Actor Jussie Smollett, the actor who faked his own hate crime in Chicago, wants the state's high court to appeal his disorderly conduct convictions and sentence.

According to the Associated Press, he's asking the Illinois Supreme Court to hear his request to overturn a previous appeals court decision that upheld his charges.

Though he was sentenced to five months in jail, he was released pending appeal of his case, which has turned into a years-long legal battle.

The AP noted:

In 2021, a jury convicted the “Empire” actor on five felony counts of disorderly conduct, a charge that can be filed in Illinois when a person is accused of lying to police.

He was sentenced to five months in jail, but was released pending appeal of his conviction and sentence. Smollett has maintained his innocence.

Smollett and his attorneys are still blaming the conviction on politics.

His attorneys wrote in a filing, "What should have been a straightforward case has been complicated by the intersection of politics and public outrage."

Jussie Smollett tries to get conviction overturned AGAIN
https://t.co/aXtpPy1j2c

— Wendy Kortepeter (@WKortepeter) February 6, 2024

The AP noted:

They repeated an argument from previous appeals saying his 2021 trial violated his Fifth Amendment protections against double jeopardy, or being punished twice for the same crime. They said 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 16 counts of disorderly conduct.

The charges against him were ultimately restored in 2020.

Social media users reacted to the news that Smollett is trying to have his convictions overturned yet again, with many doubting that he has a chance.

"What’s Jussie Smollett basis he’s using to appeal his conviction? That he is black and gay therefore exempt from any laws?" one X user wrote.

Another X user wrote, "What he did was more than just a lie. His actions, for personal gain, hurt race relations and spit in the face of the civil rights activists."

Many social media users believe Smollett is also desperate for media attention and only seeking to generate headlines.

"Just another cheap attempt to get publicity. Remember, ANY publicity is good publicity," one X user wrote.