Tina Knowles-Lawson, the mother of left-wing pop superstar Beyoncé, asked if disgraced actor Jussie Smollett will be treated with “compassion” during sentencing for his hate crime hoax, claiming that “Kyle Rittenhouse walked free after killing two people because the jury had compassion.”
Knowles-Lawson shared a screenshot of a CNN opinion piece, titled, “What Jussie Smollett’s guilty verdicts tell us,” which compared Smollett’s hate crime hoax to Amy Cooper, a white woman who called the police to report she was being threatened by “an African-American man” during a videotaped dispute in Central Park last year.
“The article goes on to say both were wrong but Jussie faces possible prison time and Amy Cooper The woman who called the police and lied about the black man that was Bird watching in Central Park was trying to attack her,” Knowles-Lawson wrote in an Instagram caption.
“Leading to the potential arrest of the man where in the history of black men In Custody could have led to his death !! Amy Cooper got off with public service,” Beyoncé’s mom continued.
Knowles-Lawson, who said she does not condone the guilty verdict, went on to question whether Smollett will receive “the same compassion” shown to Cooper.
“We will see the outcome of this for this Black man . Will he get the same compassion as Amy Cooper?” she asked. “I am not condoning what Mr Smollet was found guilty of . I am just asking will he get the same compassion and understanding of knowingly lying to police.”
Beyoncé’s mom then compared Smollett’s case to the Kyle Rittenhouse trial, which concluded late last month after a jury found the 18-year-old not guilty of all charges.
“Kyle Rittenhouse walked free after killing two people because the jury had compassion ?” Knowles-Lawson inquired.
The jury found that Rittenhouse acted in self-defense when he was attacked in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last year during a Black Lives Matter riot.
Smollett was found guilty of five counts of felony disorderly conduct for filing a false police report after he hired two brothers from Nigeria to stage a fake hate crime against him.
The class 4 felony carries a maximum sentence of up to 3 years in prison for each count — but experts believe the actor will likely get probation and be sentenced to community service if convicted. Smollett was acquitted of just one count of disorderly conduct.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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