Jussie Smollett trial: Key moments since he reported Chicago attack

The only Black juror on the panel that convicted Jussie Smollett of lying to Chicago police said he couldn't get past what the actor did not do after he claimed attackers looped a noose around his neck: Rip it off and keep it off. If others saw the noose as Smollett's clumsy effort to portray his attackers as racist, Andre Hope saw much more.

Actor Jussie Smollett was found guilty of lying to police last week after he claimed he was the victim of a hate crime in 2019 and, of all things, a Subway sandwich was a key piece of evidence in the case against him, the former Chicago police superintendent said, according to reports.  Ex-Superintendent Eddie Johnson told NewsNationNow's "Morning in America" that Smollett left his home around 2 a.m.

 Former “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett was convicted Thursday on five of six charges he staged an anti-gay, racist attack on himself nearly three years ago and then lied to Chicago police about it.

CHICAGO (AP) — Jussie Smollett is on trial on charges that he lied to Chicago police when the former "Empire" actor and R&B singer reported being the victim of a racist and homophobic attack nearly three years ago. Some key moments in the story: Smollett receives a racist and homophobic threatening letter at the studio in Chicago where "Empire" is filmed.

Jussie Smollett tells police he was attacked by two men in downtown Chicago at 2 a.m. The actor says the men used racist and homophobic slurs, wrapped a rope around his neck and poured an "unknown substance" on him.

With the defense and the prosecution resting their respective cases earlier this week, closing arguments are set to begin Wednesday morning in the case against former "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett.  Smollett, who is Black and gay, is accused of staging a racist, homophobic hate crime against himself in downtown Chicago in January 2019.

Outside the courtroom where former "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett is fighting charges accusing him of lying to Chicago police about being the victim of an anti-gay, racist attack, his publicist has introduced a roster of supporters to the assembled TV cameras. Renowned opera singer Lauren Michelle, who also appeared on "Empire," spoke of how one of her best friends from high school has maintained his humanity despite the attacks on his character.

Jussie Smollett said he had correspondence with CNN's Don Lemon during the early parts of the Chicago Police Department’s (CPD) investigation into the alleged hate crime attack for which Smollett is currently on trial defending himself against allegations he faked the entire ordeal.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterJussie Smollett, the former “Empire” star, took the stand in a Chicago courtroom on Monday and denied that he staged a hate crime against himself nearly three years ago, according to local reports.Smollett, 39, walked the jury through his version of the events of Jan. 29, 2019, when he alleges he was attacked by two men who uttered homophobic and racist slurs and put a rope around his neck.

Jussie Smollett tells police he was attacked by two men in downtown Chicago at 2 a.m. The actor says the men used racist and homophobic slurs, wrapped a rope around his neck and poured an "unknown substance" on him.

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Jussie Smollett paid them to pull off a fake attack took the stand on Wednesday. Smollett, 39, faces six counts of disorderly conduct and is accused of lying to police about the 2019 incident.Smollett, who is Black and openly gay, told Chicago police that he was attacked by two masked men who yelled racist and homophobic slurs in January 2019, authorities said.

Jussie Smollett, who is accused of lying to police when he reported he was the victim of racist and homophobic attack in downtown Chicago, appeared troubled when he was told that a surveillance camera did not record the alleged assault, a police detective testified Wednesday.

Jussie Smollett tells police he was attacked by two men in downtown Chicago at 2 a.m. The actor says the men used racist and homophobic slurs, wrapped a rope around his neck and poured an "unknown substance" on him.

Jussie Smollett “is a real victim” of a “real crime,” his attorney said as the ex-“Empire” actor’s trial started Monday, rejecting prosecutors’ allegation that he staged a homophobic and racist attack in Chicago after the television studio where he worked didn’t take hate mail he had received seriously.

Former Empire star Jussie Smollett will soon stand trial over claims that he lied about being the victim of a homophobic attack in Chicago in 2019.Jury selection started this week in Chicago, CNN reports, after the gay actor was charged last year with making false reports to police.Smollett has repeatedly insisted that he is innocent, after telling authorities that he was attacked in Chicago by two men yelling racist and homophobic slurs in the early morning of January 29, 2019.Smollett said the