Lynching was used to create terror. Staging an attack is used to draw attention. It's attentionism.

And it will undermine confidence in the testimonies of future victims. Sad but true.

Does anybody actually know why he was let off? I'm finding a lot of theories, but nothing concrete about the decision to drop the charges.

Draw attention to what though?

So is it terrorism or not? — Roke

No. It was as ill-advised as stupid bullshit usually is.

Maybe the prosecutor thought it was just too loony to convict. A few years in psychotherapy would probably be a good idea.

Does anybody actually know why he was let off? — NKBJ

The police didn't want to let it go, so it must have come from one of the higher-ups. The trial would have been expensive and retarded, and likely gone on to inflame racial tensions further.

There's also a chilling effect that happens when you throw the book at people who make false police reports: actual victims then fear to report actual crimes.

Ultimately the cons of prosecution, for the city, (or whoever interceded) outweighed the pros.

Draw attention to what though? — Roke

To himself. He was looking for publicity. He got it.

I don’t disagree. But if we accept Harris’s assertion that this was terrorism before it turned out to be a hoax... I don’t see how the terror element is removed by virtue of it being deliberately orchestrated plot for public and political consumption.

Some stupid bullshit is orders of magnitude worse than other stupid bullshit.

That sounds like it's probably true. I'd still like to see an official statement though. Any idea if that's forthcoming?

You don’t think he was trying to also draw attention to (terrifying) violent bigotry in modern America?

You don’t think he was trying to also draw attention to (terrifying) violent bigotry in modern America? — Roke

I think he was trying to exploit the attention that violent bigotry does draw. In the process he made fools of the people who wanted to support him.

Honestly no one should care about this story

Honestly no one should care if other people care about this story

It's not a terrorist attack if the only victim was the person who started the hoax in the first place. The only setback was the time and wasted resources.

Does anybody actually know why he was let off? I'm finding a lot of theories, but nothing concrete about the decision to drop the charges. — NKBJ

"The Cook County State's Attorney's Office dropped all charges against Smollett on Tuesday but released little about why it abandoned the 16 felony disorderly conduct charges.
The lead prosecutor in the case said they reviewed the case's facts and considered Smollett's volunteer service in the community as well as his willingness to forfeit his $10,000 bond. He also noted that Smollett had no prior felonies and wasn't a danger to the community.
"That to me sounds like a deferred prosecution," Coates, the former federal prosecutor, said.
"It is quite common," she said. "Prosecutors thinking about reviewing the evidence decide that maybe a criminal solution or criminal prosecution is no longer the most effective way to reach justice."

Source:https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/27/entertainment/experts-jussie-smollett-why-prosecutors-dropped-charges/index.html

The actual details are sealed so we may never know the intimate details as to why, but apparently this is a case of deferred prosecution which happens often apparently.

For pointers on how to end a career I’d say his actions would be useful to follow :)

What was going through his mind? People are weird!

I think you might need to look up the definition of "victim".

Famous people's careers have survived worse, I'm afraid. Remember when Sean Penn beat up then-girlfriend Madonna with a baseball bat?

Famous people's careers have survived worse, I'm afraid. Remember when Sean Penn beat up then-girlfriend Madonna with a baseball bat? — NKBJ

She denies that occurred. https://www.thedailybeast.com/madonna-comes-forward-about-sean-penns-alleged-abuse-sean-has-never-struck-me

She denied it in 2015. The alleged attack happened in the 80's. His career between those two dates seems not to have suffered, and it's pretty telling that the police officers on call that night say she was a bloody, bruised mess.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/sean-penns-horrifying-history-of-alleged-abuse?ref=scroll

Point is, even before anyone heard Madonna defend him, Hollywood didn't care that he was an alleged criminal.

Same with Weinstein.

I think you might need to look up the definition of "victim". — whollyrolling

It wasn't a terrorist attack. Jussie hurt nobody but himself and ultimately his career case closed not sure why you're trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill. Jussie for all intensive purpose was the victim concocted story or not.

If I come in swinging trying to punch everyone in a room, but I only end up punching myself over and over, I'm not a victim, I'm just ineffective and an asshole, possibly with cognitive limitations.

Ok, but its still not terrorism. At the end of the day nobody was physically hurt.