BREAKING: Jury has reached a verdict in Jussie Smollett hate crime hoax trial; UPDATE: Guilty on 5 of 6 counts

Doug P. | 5:45 PM on December 09, 2021

Yesterday the prosecution and defense at the Jussie Smollett trial presented their closing arguments to the jury, who then began deliberations:

Smollett jury hits 8 hours. Dinner just ordered.

— Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) December 9, 2021

Now reporters covering the trial are saying a verdict has been reached after a few hours of deliberations:

BREAKING: Verdict in Jussie Smollett case

— Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) December 9, 2021

BREAKING: A verdict has been reached in Jussie Smollett's trial @cbschicago

— Charlie De Mar (@CharlieDeMar) December 9, 2021

We’re expecting the verdicts to be announced soon and will update this story when that happens.

Update:

The reading of the verdicts has apparently been delayed because it’s taken Smollett a while to get to the courthouse:

We are waiting for Jussie Smollett to return to the courthouse. So far no sign of him or his attorneys.

— Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) December 9, 2021

Smollett in courtroom. Standby.

— Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) December 9, 2021

Update II: Verdicts are being read:

BREAKING: Smollett found guilty on counts 1,2,3

— Charlie De Mar (@CharlieDeMar) December 9, 2021

A jury of six men and six women deliberated more than nine hours over two days before finding Smollett guilty of five of six counts of disorderly conduct, accusing the actor of staging a fake racist and homophobic attack against himself in January 2019, and then lying to police about it, in a bid for publicity. Jurors found him not guilty of the sixth count of disorderly conduct.