Jussie
Smollett pleads not guilty to 16 counts of disorderly conduct stemming from
alleged hate crime hoax
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s office will not be
prosecuting Jussie
Smollett, who was previously accused of faking an anti-black, anti-gay hate
crime in Chicago in order to drum up publicity for his role on the TV drama
“Empire,” Fox News has learned.
The judge granted a nolle pros, which essentially means
that the case has been dropped and that he will no longer be prosecuted for the
alleged crime. It’s unclear at this time why the court decided not to proceed
with prosecution, but the former “Empire” star is expected to give a statement
after he leaves the courthouse later today.
Smollett previously plead "not guilty" to 16 counts of
disorderly conduct stemming from the alleged incident in which he claimed two
men beat him, poured bleach on him and placed a rope around his neck before
yelling, "This is MAGA country."
His lawyer, Tina Glandian, entered
the plea on Smollett’s behalf just hours after Judge Steven Watkins was
assigned the case. The next court date was scheduled for April 17.
However, Smollett was brought in for an emergency court session in which the
judge ruled the case against him would be dropped.
Story developing...
