All charges against Jussie Smollett dropped, but the streets are still angry

27 March 2019 - 06:26 By Kyle Zeeman
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All criminal charges against Jussie Smollett have been dropped. File photo.
All criminal charges against Jussie Smollett have been dropped. File photo.
Image: Reuters/Danny Moloshok

Social media have exploded with reaction to a decision by US prosecutors to drop all charges against Empire star Jussie Smollett, who was accused of fabricating a racist and homophobic hate crime against him.

Jussie claimed to have been attacked by two men who poured an unknown chemical on him, put a rope around his neck and used racial and homophobic slurs. It was later reported that two brothers, who were the main suspects, told detectives that Jussie had paid them to stage the attack.

He was subsequently charged with a class four felony for falsifying a police report and handed himself over to the police to be arrested.

Jussie's attorneys said that they were overjoyed with the decision.

"He was a victim who was vilified and made to appear as a perpetrator as a result of false and inappropriate remarks made to the public, causing an inappropriate rush to judgement," Tina Glandian and Patricia Brown Holmes said in a joint statement.

The case has sparked massive reaction on social media at every turn and on Tuesday Twitter was flooded with comments and memes in response to this latest development.


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