Jussie Smollet Charged with 16 Felony Counts

Hate crime hoaxster Jussie Smollet was charged Friday with multiple counts of a class four felony.

Prosecutors originally charged the “Empire” actor with a single count of disorderly conduct for filing a false police report. A Cook County grand jury, in an 86-page indictment, found 15 additional counts warranted due to Smollet’s repeated lies to investigators about a fake hate crime against him, according to CWB Chicago.

Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson told reporters in February that his department believed that Smollett was also responsible for mailing a threatening letter to himself. Any indictment having to do with the letter would come from a federal grand jury.

While the additional counts may impact the severity of his sentence, most disorderly conduct charges in Cook County are resolved by plea where the defendant accepts one or two counts in return for a suspended sentence and probation. If Smollett takes a plea deal, he’ll likely serve no more than four years probation.

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