Jussie Smollett‘s conviction in an alleged hate crime hoax was overturned on Thursday by the Illinois Supreme Court.

The “Empire” actor was convicted in December 2021 of five felony counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly staging a hate crime against himself and was sentenced the following year to 150 days in county jail. In December 2023, his bid for an appeal was denied.

“We are aware that this case has generated significant public interest and that many people were dissatisfied with the resolution of the original case and believed it to be unjust,” the court’s opinion reads, according to the Chicago Tribune. “Nevertheless, what would be more unjust than the resolution of any one criminal case would be a holding from this court that the State was not bound to honor agreements upon which people have detrimentally relied.”

More to come…