Thread by @djbyrnes1

Back at Cook County Criminal Courthouse for what should be the last day of Jussie #Smollett's criminal trial for allegedly staging a hate crime. Closing arguments from the lawyers are set for today, then the jury will begin deliberation.

Presiding Judge James Linn says he's not putting any time limits on the lawyers for closing arguments, which means they'll go as long as prosecutors and Smollett's attorneys think they need.

Linn is impressing on the jury that the state has to prove Smollett's alleged guilt "beyond a reasonable doubt."

Prosecution beginning its closing arguments. Prosecutor Dan Webb says the state has more than proven Smollett's alleged guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. “We have proven this by overwhelming evidence,” he tells the jury.

Webb singing the police detective's praises. "They wanted to bring to justice, the people who attacked [Smollett]," he says. Defense has previously forwarded that the investigators in the case made assumptions and jumped to conclusions.

Webb says Smollett lied to the jury under oath, citing what he says are several discrepancies between Smollett's testimony and the available evidence.

Webb speaks a mile a minute so it's hard to get quotes in, but he's currently discussing Smollett's testimony to police detectives that one of his attackers was white, testimony which he later changed to "pale-skinned."

Webb says this is an example of Smollett allegedly not being able to keep his story straight. He also questions the credulity of Smollett's testimony that he was out at 2 a.m. in a Chicago winter to buy eggs, from a Walgreen's that isn't open 24 hours.

Prosecution is saying Smollett's not initially turning over evidence to police, such as DNA samples and his cell phone, is suspicious. "If he is the true victim of a crime, he would not be withholding evidence," Webb says.

"Mr. Smollett was smart - 'I'll report this as a hate crime, but I don't want [the Osundairo brothers] apprehended.' That's why he withheld evidence," Webb says.

Webb still discussing the cell phone. "Smollett realized that because of the way they did this hate crime planning, he had a lot of communication with Abimbola Osundairo going back 4 or 5 days... and he didn't want the police to discover that. So he refused to produce the phone."

Prosecution lists 40 text messages, 5 phone calls, and 9 Instagram messages between Smollett and Abimbola Osundairo in the week leading up to the alleged attack.

Webb moving on to medical evidence. Pointing out that Dr. Robert Turelli, who examined Smollett after the alleged attack in 2019, testified that Smollett suffered no significant injuries. Webb says this is why Smollett was reluctant to share medical records with detectives.

"This is not a matter of privacy or principal... Smollett did not want the police to figure out that he wasn't injured that much," Webb says.

And on to DNA evidence. Smollett said on the stand that he's incredibly reluctant to share DNA, especially to the Chicago police, for privacy reasons. But Webb alleges that this is yet more evidence of Smollett not wanting police to be able to solve the case.

Webb repeats Smollett's alleged quote to police that the Osundairo brothers couldn't have been the ones to attack him, because they're "Black as sin." Smollett denied ever using this simile to describe the brothers.

Moving on to the rope that Smollett's alleged attackers allegedly wrapped around his neck as a noose. Prosecution questioning the altered appearance of the rope between footage in the lobby of Smollet's apartment building, and in the body cam of a responding police officer.

This has been a contested issue throughout the trial. Smollet asserts that he took off the rope after returning to his apartment, only to put it back on to show police how his alleged attackers placed it on him. This handling, he said, explains the difference in its appearance.

Smollett has claimed the rope looked less like a noose in the police footage due to it coming unraveled. But the lead investigator into the case, Michael Theis, says the rope looks *more* like a noose in the body cam footage, allegedly because Smollett re-tied it for effect.

Webb questioning the seeming randomness of the alleged attack. Posits that the many entrances into Smollett's apartment building makes what he calls random "bushwhacking" unlikely. "The Osundairo brothers didn't try to cover all the exits... they knew exactly where he would be."

Back to medical evidence; connecting the Osundairo brothers' testimony that Smollett told them to pull their punches, to Turelli's testimony that Smollett wasn't severely injured. "The medical evidence shows that [Smollett]'s lying. It shows the brothers are telling the truth."

Webb also questioning why Smollett would send a text message of support to the Osundairo brothers after they were arrested in February of 2019, when they were suspected of allegedly attacking him.

Prosecution laying out a timeline of the alleged events leading up to the alleged attack:

Jan. 22 - Smollett shows Abimbola the hate letter he received on the set of "Empire.

Jan. 25 - Smollett asks Abimbola for help "on the low," and Abimbola allegedly agrees to help Smollett stage a hate crime.

Jan. 25 is also allegedly when Smollett recruits Olabinjo Osundairo, Abimbola's older brother, into the alleged hate crime plan.

Webb making a tangent into Smollett's explanation that his request for Abimbola's help "on the low" was in order to get an herbal weight loss steroid in Nigeria that is illegal in the U.S.

Webb points out that Abimbola, who is Nigerian-American and visits Nigeria often, denied the existence of such a steroid. Also reminds the jury that Smollett said he didn't know the names of any herbal steroids that you can get in Nigeria that are illegal in the U.S.

Back to the timeline:
Jan. 27 - Webb says Smollett takes the brothers on a "dry run" to plan the alleged hate crime. Cites the video evidence of Smollett driving to Abimbola's apartment building, then to the site of the alleged attack.

Another tangent into the $3,500 check Smollett wrote to Abimbola, allegedly for personal training. Webb claims $3,500 is an inordinate fee for assembling a meal and exercise plan.

Timeline:
Jan 28 - The Osundairo brothers purchase clothes and other items, allegedly in preparation for the hate crime. Also claims the three talked about moving the alleged hate crime from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. due to Smollett's flight into Chicago that day being delayed.

Webb again praising the CPD - cites Theis' testimony that 24 to 26 officers were working Smollett's alleged hate crime case - disparages the defense's assertion that the police rushed to judgment. "That's not fair," he says.

Taking a break from live-tweeting to work on my longer story for the day. I'll pick it back up when the defense begins presenting its own closing arguments

I pick up the livetweeting of the defense's closing arguments here:

https://twitter.com/djbyrnes1/status/1468634590327844870