Empire star Jussie Smollett has requested a new trial after receiving a guilty verdict for his hate crime case.
According to a report from NBC News, the actor filed an 83-page document that claimed “numerous trial errors leading up to the trial.”
In the request, Smollett’s team said that their inability to participate in the jury selection process prevented them from recognizing “questionable impartiality.”
They also claimed that the evidence introduced to the jury was “insufficient and inconsistent so that no reasonable trier of fact could have found Mr Smollett guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and thus there is evidence that the jury verdict was contrary to manifest weight of the evidence.”
“As such, the defendant no respectfully requests that his convictions be vacated or in the alternative, that the court grant the defendant a new trial,” his team added.
The petition for a new trial comes two months after he was found guilty of lying to police about being the victim of a hate crime in January 2019.
The trial, which began in November 2021, saw two brothers, Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo, claim that the Underground actor paid them $3,500 (£2,600) to carry out a fake attack on him.
However, in response to the prosecution’s claim, the actor stated that the payment was for a meal and workout plan he could use while travelling.
The actor told jurors: “There was no hoax.”
Throughout the nearly two-week trial, Smollett stuck with his claim that the alleged attackers shouted a Trump slogan and tied a noose around his neck.
On 9 December, a jury of six men and six women convicted the actor of five of the six felony disorderly conduct charges.
Each count carries a penalty of up to three years in prison, though it is expected he will face a shortened sentence or probation due to a lack of previous convictions.
Aside from his recent request, Smollett is set to return to court on 10 March for his official sentencing.
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