The alleged homophobic assault of “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett is being called into question tonight after new revelations in the case surfaced and two arrested suspects began cooperating with Chicago law authorities.
According to a bombshell news story reported by S.E. Cupp at CNN, police sources have discovered new evidence in the case to suggest Jussie Smollett orchestrated the attack or was involved in some way. The sources – two law enforcement officers with knowledge of the ongoing investigation, told CNN that the Chicago Police Department has reason to believe Jussie participated in the planning and execution of the alleged homophobic attack.
The violent assault caused national outrage when it was reported that Jussie Smollett told police on January 29th that he had been verbally assaulted and beaten by two men as he left a Subway sandwich shop at 2am. In addition to the men yelling out racial and homophobic slurs, the attack escalated to a hanging noose being put around Smollett’s neck, followed by the men dousing him with bleach, declaring “This is MAGA country!”
The implication here is that the assailants were racists and presumably Caucasian. However, after weeks of police investigation and reviewing surveillance footage no such suspects could be found or identified.
Here is the BREAKING NEWS tonight. As harrowing a tale Jussie’s seems to be, it is now being questioned. The two men arrested in connection with the case have reportedly told Chicago PD that Jussie Smollett paid them to help orchestrate his attack. A motive for such an action remains unclear. Furthermore, the police sources also told CNN there are records that prove the two men in question, who are actually brothers, purchased the rope used for “the noose” from a local Ace Hardware store in Chicago.
Oddly, this all seems now like it’s morphing into a bad plot line from the show Empire itself – one that not even Cookie Lyon could make sense of.
However, despite how things may look, Jussie Smollett as of now is a victim of a violent, racially biased assault. That is his claim and we must believe him until otherwise disproven. That said, as there are implications that there could be mistruths in his story, it would be irresponsible for me not to point out that victims of violent crimes, especially women who share their stories are often not believed. In Jussie’s case, a high profile attack that turns out to be fabricated would do very little to reverse that dynamic. Instead, it could further enforce it.
This new update to the Jussie Smollett story has sparked a social media landscape of conversations, ranging from unwavering support from celebrities and national politicians, to members of the LBGTQ community who are dreading the possibility that it's all been a hoax. There are opinions on both sides, but there was a poignant sense of heartbreak I encountered tonight in a Facebook thread where a friend pointed out, “If Jussie Smollett has made this up, he’s made a mockery of Matthew Sheppard, a real victim, of a real violent hate crime who gave his life”.
h/t: S.E. Cupp at CNN
This didn’t pass the smell
This didn't pass the smell test (for me, at least) from the outset, so this turn of events is no surprise at all.
As for the author's assertion that we must believe him until things are disproven…why MUST we?! I didn't from the beginning and will be quick to apologise if he's proven innocent, but I'm not required to believe his story if, to me, it doesn't sound like it adds up.
what does he gain from lying
what does he gain from lying and staging this, makes no sense.
He would get admiration and
He would get admiration and credibilty as being the person who is so formidably outspoken against Trump that Trump's minions would attack him in the cold night.
I knew he was lying from his
I knew he was lying from his demeanor and fake outrage on GMA. He is not that good of actor. Like he himself said "this tells us a lot about where we are in our nation" Yeah, white guilt is American blacks #1 asset.
I could tell from his
I could tell from his demeanor and fake outrage on GMA he was lying. White guilt is the #1 asset of blacks in America.
We believe victims – and
We believe victims – and Jussie is a victim of this serious crime.
Nigerians are known homophobes. And since they worked with Jussie in Empire, they know he is gay. Hence, they attacked him. And now they are creating this story to escape criminal offense.
Then why did he say they were
Then why did he say they were racist whites?
Did he actually say they were
Did he actually say they were white, though ? I think he said they were covered up so he couldn't see their faces or anything, but the assumption, for everybody, was supposed to be that they were white because of the "MAGA" thing. (I THINK that's what I remember).
I think you may be right RTE
I think you may be right RTE 66. Thank you for the clarification. However I don’t know too many blacks running around using “MAGA Country”, but possible. The culprits may have been from Nigeria. We will all have to wait and see how this pans out.
The Nigerian guys say he paid
The Nigerian guys say he paid them $3000 for helping him pull a hoax, but Jussie Smollett's attorney(s) already released a statement that basically says Smollett is innocent and shocked and disappointed to learn that the attack was carried out by the two Empire-connected/Nigerian friends of his, so….I guess that's going to be the defense attorney's position. I guess both positions require a lot of explanation.
“who hires a criminal defense
"who hires a criminal defense attorney if they were innocent?" Really?
What kind of barf brain lives under a rock not to know that when you're a prominent person with dozens of accusations coming at you you need the best help?
A unique situation, first the
A unique situation, first the victim of a gay bashing, now the criminal in a hoax. Just a sad story all the way around. The hiring of a defense attorney was the turning point in this story for me. First it was two white guys yelling “this is MAGA country” to two Nigerian brothers who worked on the set of Empire. As usual, following the money should provide some definitive proof. It time to hand over his cell phone.
Who hires a criminal  defense
Who hires a criminal defense attorney if they are innocent, one on the caliber of Michael Monico, who represented Michael Cohen in the Donald Trump fiasco. Jussie, how could you!
He has no other choice! With
He has no other choice! With false allegations that he coordinated the attack, he would have to hire professionals. I would do the same in his situation.