COMMENTARY: The real victims in the Jussie Smollett Case are the ones you’ll never hear about - Global News

From the plot twists to the shocker ending, the Jussie Smollett case has played out more like a plot line from the actor’s high-drama series Empire than real life. Though sadly, this isn’t showbiz, this is real life with very real consequences for more than just Smollett.It’s been a bizarre two months, to say the least. It began Jan. 29 when the 36-year-old actor said he was allegedly attacked by two men who shouted racial and homophobic slurs, poured a chemical substance on him and tied a noose around his neck.Story continues belowBut nearly a month later Smollett himself was charged with orchestrating the heinous attack on himself. And now in the latest surprise turn of events, on March 26, all 16 felony charges against Smollett were dismissed for the alleged hate crime hoax.READ MORE: All criminal charges against Jussie Smollett droppedWhile Smollett has maintained his innocence the entire time, this case is far from cut and dry. As Tandra Simonton, a spokeswoman for the Cook County state’s attorney told NBC News, prosecutors “did not exonerate Mr. Smollett,” but offered an agreement such that “the charges were dropped in return for Mr. Smollett’s agreement to do community service and forfeit his $10,000 bond to the City of Chicago. Without the completion of these terms, the charges would not have been dropped.”And while it’s not completely uncommon for prosecutors to drop charges if they feel they don’t have substantive evidence to move forward, this feels a lot muddier than that — especially given the reactions from the mayor and Chicago Police.Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson, blindsided by the decision, were more than a little upset, to say the least. The Mayor expressed his outrage in a press conference later that day.WATCH BELOW: Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel blasted ‘Empire’ star Jussie Smollett

from Entertainment - Latest - Google News https://ift.tt/2HOqHpC
via IFTTT
March 30, 2019 at 01:31AM