Jussie Smollett asks court to hear appeal against hate crime lies convictions

Jussie Smollett has asked the Illinois Supreme Court to intervene in his yearslong legal battle stemming from convictions that he staged a racist, homophobic attack against himself in 2019 and lied about it to police (Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Actor Jussie Smollett has asked the Illinois Supreme Court to intervene in his yearslong legal battle stemming from charges that he staged a racist, homophobic attack against himself in 2019 and lied about it to Chicago police.

His petition, filed on Monday, asks the state’s highest court to hear the case two months after an appeals court upheld his disorderly conduct convictions and sentence.