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Some pre-sentencing drama taking place today. Jussie Smollett was supposed to be in court for his sentencing a 1 pm Chicago time. However, as it got to be 10 minutes before 1 pm, there was still no sign of Smollett. The local CBS affiliate covering the trial started a countdown of sorts with one legal analyst noting that showing up late for court was a surefire way to show a lack of respect for the judge. Finally at 1:01 pm Smollett’s SUV arrived in front of the courthouse and he escorted his 92-year-old grandmother inside.

There was more drama on the courthouse steps as Smollett’s bodyguards began shoving reporters out of the way. One reporter accused one of the bodyguards of “battery” for knocking down a photographer. “Kind of a violent entrance, shoving and throwing people around,” the reporter said.

As I said yesterday, I’m hoping Smollett at least gets some jail time largely because he has been lying about this incident for three years now. He’ll be given one last chance to speak before the judge issues his sentence. If he wanted to show some remorse he could confess that he planned this racial hate hoax for his own benefit. My guess is he’ll just keep lying. There are cameras allowed inside the courtroom today so whatever happens we’ll get to see it live.

But even before we get to that, the defense has filed a motion to seek a new trial. As I write this, Smollett’s attorney Tina Glandian is making her case.

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The judge will have to dispense with that motion first. I’ll update this story when we get to the sentencing. Until then, here’s the live feed from inside the courtroom.

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