Posted on 02/17/2019 2:14:58 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Are we finally coming to the end of the Jussie Smollett “hate crime” story? I’ve mostly steered clear of this confusing tale except for some of the usual banter on Twitter, but the most recent developments seem to be sending the actor toward a very dark place. To be clear, we’re not at the point where anything is 100% confirmed, and if Smollett actually was attacked I want his assailants found and prosecuted. But according to the Chicago police, the investigation into his alleged assault has “shifted.” They’re still not being terribly specific, but there are plenty of hints to be found as to what they’re talking about. (Associated Press)
Chicago police said Saturday the investigation into the attack reported by Jussie Smollett has “shifted” due to information received from two brothers arrested in the case then released, and police want to interview the “Empire” actor again.
Chicago police had released the two Nigerian brothers without charges late Friday and said they were no longer suspects in the reported attack.
“We can confirm that the information received from the individuals questioned by police earlier in the Empire case has in fact shifted the trajectory of the investigation,” Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in an emailed statement Saturday. “We’ve reached out to the Empire cast member’s attorney to request a follow-up interview.”
The cops sounded pretty confident that they had identified the two men seen in various bits of video footage from the time of the supposed assault. The two Nigerians were later identified as being associates of Smollett, with one of them being a personal trainer he’d previously hired to help get him in shape for an acting role. They also don’t seem to fit the profile one might expect of typical “rednecks” in MAGA hats, to put it mildly.
For his part, the actor is still saying there’s “no truth” to the idea he might have played role in the attack, and he finds the suggestion offensive. And of course, he’s blaming Trump, as Karen pointed out yesterday. But details are leaking out and it’s now being alleged that not only did he put his buddies up to participating in a hoax hate crime, but he paid them thousands of dollars to do it. (NY Post)
Chicago police now believe “Empire” TV actor Jussie Smollett paid two pals to fake the attack that he has insisted was carried out by a pair of homophobic and racist strangers, according to a stunning new report.
The buddies — body-builder brothers from Nigeria — told cops they purchased the rope for the noose recovered from Smollett’s neck after the attack, Fox’s Chicago affiliate reported Saturday night, citing multiple Chicago law-enforcement sources. The two are cooperating with the probe, and have turned over to cops the Ace Hardware receipt for their purchase of the rope, Fox 32 reported.
Coming up with a receipt for the rope used to make the noose sounds like a pretty specific piece of information. Unless some new, startling evidence to the contrary turns up, it’s really looking as if Smollett faked the attack for reasons we don’t yet know.
So let’s say that’s what actually happened. If so, what becomes of this entire debacle? Smollett’s supporters in both Hollywood and the political circus should walk back all the accusations they hurled and their indignant statements of support for him, though most will likely go into radio silence mode on the subject.
But there’s more damage to clean up than the usual Twitter wars. The police invested resources into a lengthy investigation. And the actor has cast a shadow over not only his own career but the future success of the show he’s on. Who pays for all of that? Under Illinois law, filing a false police report in this fashion is just a Class A misdemeanor under the state’s disorderly conduct statutes. For a first offense, it brings a maximum fine of $10,000 and some community service, but jail time is unusual. Does that seem like sufficient justice for setting off a national media firestorm in this fashion?
I’m seeing some people suggest that the supposed death threat letter he received could be treated as a federal crime with more serious penalties. Sending death threats through the U.S. mail system is definitely a crime, but if he either sent it himself or had his friends do it, and all parties knew that it was a hoax, was there really a death threat sent? Seems to me that a competent attorney could get that charged kicked fairly easily.
He didn’t really defame anyone if the two alleged participants not only went along with it but were paid for their services. Making a generic accusation against “Trump-supporting rednecks” may be proven to be a total fabrication, but no specific person would be able to show damages. So is that it? He writes a check to the courts, maybe spends a couple of weekends picking up trash in a public park and everyone just gets on with their lives? That’s what it looks like to me, but it certainly doesn’t feel like a satisfying conclusion.
Skip arrest, go to grand jury... Kid glove treatment already.
Not even a wimper.
He holds three get out of jail for free cards: race, gay, and liberal.
He is probably getting movie role offers.
Under the rug, it will be swept Yoda.
Exactly.
It's a shame what's happened to this country.
Ends with less than a whimper as they sweep this under the rug and MAYBE give him a slap on the wrist. It’s not like he tried to over throw the duly elected president of the United States.
These fake accusations go on all the time, but the Media never gets around to telling the public they are frauds.
Just more of the bloated, pathetic, and mindless celebrity culture of today. You can watch episodes of “Entertainment This Week” from about 1981 or 1982 on YouTube and it is hard to believe that it was actually once fun and interesting to follow that sort of thing.
Duh. Why does anyone think the truth came out on the weekend.
Tomorrow it’ll be “it’s over and in the past. We need to move on.”
This is the big question.
If a white actor castigated black people, he’d have to humble himself and go on an apology tour. If he broke any laws, he’d serve time, famous or not.
Americans who happen to be white and happen to have supported one of the duly nominated candidates for President are also a victim group at this point.
A black person can wear rap gear, African dashikis, anything that shows pride in his heritage, where a white Trump supporter is threatened if they wear their campaign hat in public.
PREJUDICE AGAINST GROUPS IS EITHER WRONG OR IT ISNT.
JUSTICE IS EITHER BLIND OR IT ISNT.
A very long prison sentence - 20 years - for the hoax and treasonous attempt to incite a race war, a hate crime of epic proportions. Anything less is a joke.
From what I have read about the relevant Illinois law (but IANAL), Jussie can be charged with a Class 4 felony for the false report of a crime and could end up being sentenced to as much as 3 years in jail.
Now of course the chances of all that happening in the “blue” cesspool of Chicago are low, but that is what, legally, could happen now.
The best hope now is that Chicago police officials are sufficiently riled up by wasting weeks of detective time on this b.s. However, police do not decide upon charges and prosecutions. The Chicago DA’s office is surely a libtard cesspool. Will they really come down hard on Jussie? Doubtful.
Still, pressures must be exerted to try to get this whole fiasco investigated and prosecuted properly.
Also, there is the federal legal angle since the hoax threat letter is reportedly being investigated by the FBI. Jussie probably sent it to himself, but can they prove anything? Who knows, but federal investigation and charges are at least a possibility.
A snivel. Faggots snivel. It’s what they do.
The Chicago PD wants to talk to him LOL awww how adorable, asking him nicely..if he were a regular ol Joe being accused of the same thing he would have had a warrant out for his arrest and taken into custody, but because he’s a homo Trump hating jackass he gets treated with kid gloves. He will NEVER confess, he feels justified in trying to put innocent men in jail for a crime he knew never happened..just think about that for a minute, he would have gladly picked out of a lineup ANYONE that was white who happened to be in the area that night..he would have slept fine and dandy at night knowing he put people in prison based on a lie he created
The more trouble he gets into, if any, the better for his career. He will be seen as a martyr for the resistance.
He can be charged with a federal offense for having those two nigerian brothers send a fake threat by mail, not sure how long he can serve in the pokey for that
The media never apologizes for spreading “hate-crime” hoaxes, they just move on to the next hoax to come along that fits their agenda.
Too funny. He could have at least hired white people.
Like all the other Fake News the mainstream media will just stop reporting on it and pretend it never happened.
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