BY BILL JUNEAU
As Jussie Smollett exited his Cook county jail cell after a brief one week stay, his fans erupted with fist pumping screams of "Justice for Jussie." The great "French" actor was out and about. It was what some would call the "denouement" or the final curtain. But is it really over for Jussie? Not likely.
He had been sentenced to spend five months in jail for his years of lying and his perjury and story telling about how he was accosted and hog-tied by Trump lovers wearing MEGA caps. State's Atty Foxx and the Rev. Jesse Jackson would like to see forgiveness for Jussie, but the law seldom forgives and never really forgets.
Jussie will be back in the County Jail for another stay within a couple of years. But then who can predict the future?
It has been a busy three years of reporting on the Jussie Smollett saga which began in January, 2019, on a below zero morning when the actor and singer in the TV series, "Empire" reported to Chicago police that he had been set upon at about 2 a.m., by two thugs and called a "black faggot," and splashed with bleach and immobilized with a noose around his neck.
It was an ugly hate crime and sympathy ran deep for the 39-year-old actor who is gay and biracial; the son of a white Jewish man and an African American mother. Many have believed that Jussie was of French ancestry, given the sound of his name, and misinformation on the street.
His blackness gave him ties to former President Obama, who reportedly made calls on his behalf. The Rev. Jesse Jackson was outraged, and so was the NAACP. "Justice for Jussie" was screamed throughout the world, and Jussie recounted on Good Morning America, with tears in his eyes, the horribleness of the homophobic assault. Hollywood went bananas over the MEGA-style hit on a black man by followers of President Trump. The New York Times and other liberal bastions called for the scoundrels to be found, prosecuted and punished.
As time passed, the real story surfaced that Jussie had actually orchestrated the attract on himself--paying two muscular friends to stage a gentle attack on a dimly lit street on the near north side of Chicago. Jussie related to detectives that he was out for a stroll in the 16-below zero weather on his way to Subway for a sandwich. Hunger was driving him, he said. He showed them the noose around his neck.
Charges of lying to the police were made and then there was an indictment; and then charges were mysteriously dropped. But in the end, Smollett was charged with six counts of disorderly conduct, a class four felony under the Illinois Criminal Code. For his lying to police he was facing a possible sentence of three years in prison and fines, if adjudged guilty in a trial. Through it all, he stuck to the story that he was accosted and that he had not arranged it.
Last December 21, a Criminal Court jury found Smollett guilty of five of the six counts against him and on March 10 Judge James Linn brought the hammer down on Smollett. He sentenced him to five months in jail, and 25 months on probation; and ordered him to pay $120,106 in restitution to the City for unnecessary detective work in investigating his case; and fined him $25,000.
Judge Linn upbraided Jussie for his premeditation of the crime and his outrageous lying about what had occurred. He directed that Smollett was to begin serving his sentence immediately, and the actor, screaming that he was innocent, was handcuffed in the courtroom and escorted by bailiffs to the county jail.
Lawyers for Jussie immediately importuned the First District Illinois Appellate court to allow the actor out on appeal bond noting that the review of the case would consume a year or more and that if found innocent of the charge, the defendant would have served an unwarranted sentence. The appellate court agreed and allowed Jussie to leave jail on a $150,000 personal recognizance bond meaning that his signature would suffice, and that putting up actual money was unnecessary.
And so the rejoicing that the star of "Empire" was hailed as having won and there was "Justice for Jussie."
But the case is not over, and the warden of the jail is more than likely keeping the cell warm for Jussie believing that he will be back to serve the five months sentence as ordered by Judge Linn.
Could the appellate court reverse Judge Linn's sentence and remand the case back to him for resentencing or for a new trial? It could happen because anything could happen. But most legal observers are of the opinion that the sentence is there to stay and that Jussie will be back in a cell within a year or two, at most.
If Smollett violates his 30 months of probation by more criminal conduct, he could wind up in the penitentiary for a very long time. Assuming that he behaves himself and does not begin fibbing about new attacks on his person, he will get through the probationary period.
But could his celebrity glamor be tainted just a bit by the smell of his ex-convict status? And in the meantime, is he likely to find another starring venue? Or is his career on hold along with his prison sentence?
When he returns to jail to finish up his sentence, he will very likely need to spend only about 72 days behind bars as he will be credited with one day less for each day of good behavior.
When he walks free permanently from jail and completes his probation, he may very well be welcomed back by his celebrity and Hollywood friends and his fellow actors as a victim of a racist society. His media supporters at CNN might even find a spot for him behind a mike as a favored contributor.
xxx
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