From masturbating in bathhouse to Don Lemon: 5 takeaways from Jussie Smollett's testimony
Jussie Smollett, the former 'Empire' star who is charged with faking a hate crime in 2019 and then lying to police about it, testified in his own defense Monday, December 6, on day five of his criminal trial.
The 39-year-old is reportedly facing six felony counts of lying to police and could face up to three years in prison if he’s convicted. The embattled actor maintained his innocence under oath on Monday, December 6, as he testified "there was no hoax" and that the hate crime he suffered was real and carried out by Nigerian brothers Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo. The actor's attorneys have claimed the siblings made up the story about a hoax then asked Smollett for $1 million each to not testify against him in court.
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Here are five takeaways from his sensational testimony:
Smollett kept noose around his neck on advice of his creative director
Smollett was still wearing a rope-like noose around his neck when police arrived at his residence about an hour after the alleged attack, telling the cops, "I just wanted you to see it.” He testified on December 6 that he had taken the rope off after getting back to his apartment, but decided to put it back on following the advice of his creative director Frank Gaston. “Why would I keep it on?” Smollett said. “Frank told me to put the stuff back on as to not mess with the evidence.”
Smollett didn't trust cops
The 'Marshall' actor told the court he would have "never called the police" following the alleged incident because he doesn't "trust police" as a "black man in America." Furthermore, he said he hesitated over reaching out to the authorities over how it could impact his career. “I want to play a boxer, I want to play a superhero, I want to blow stuff up,” Smollett testified. “The moment I got beat I became a f----t who got his ass whooped.”
Smollett regularly smokes pot
Smollett admitted on the stand that he regularly smokes blunts rolled in Swisher Sweet brand cigars. As a cast member on 'Empire', the actor said he regularly smoked a blunt around lunchtime and drive around the neighborhood where the studio was located. He said smoking up and driving around in his car alone was part of his creative process.
Don Lemon told him Chicago police didn't believe his story
Smollett also mentioned in his testimony how he allegedly received a text from CNN star anchor Don Lemon saying he had received a text from Chicago police saying they didn't believe his account of what happened. This, Smollett said, made him uneasy about turning over his phone records to investigators.
Alleged sexual relationship with one brother
Smollett testified that he had a sexual relationship with Abimbola Osundairo, who alleges the actor paid him and his brother Olabinjo to "fake beat him up." The actor said he and Abimbola did drugs together, made out, and masturbated each other at a gay bathhouse in Chicago's Boystown neighborhood. "We went alone, we got a private room again," Smollett said. "We made out a little bit and this time we masturbated together." According to the actor, there was gay pornography on the bathhouse walls. This contradicted Osundairo's testimony last week that he's heterosexual and did not masturbate with Smollett at the bathhouse. However, he admitted he had gone to the location with him on at least one occasion.