A Cook County judge heard more than five hours of testimony and arguments behind closed doors Wednesday to try and determine whether one of Jussie Smollett’s chosen attorneys should be disqualified from representing him over an alleged conflict of interest.
Judge James Linn will announce his decision regarding lawyer Nenye Uche at a later date, according to attorneys who emerged from the private hearing late Wednesday.
It was the former “Empire” actor’s first in-person appearance in a Cook County courtroom in more than a year.
The hearing centered on whether Uche talked about the case with Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo in 2019 as the Smollett matter was in its very early stages. The Osundairos are now key witnesses against Smollett.
When Uche signed on to represent Smollett earlier this year, the Osundairo brothers alleged that Uche spoke with them about representing them, and had substantive conversations about the case. If true, that could mean Uche has a conflict of interest barring him from representing Smollett.
Uche, however, has repeatedly denied ever having had conversations with the brothers.
Linn has said that with such an enormous factual dispute between the two sides, he had little choice but to order a hearing into the allegations.
The case has been conducted with an unusual amount of secrecy in recent months. A slew of paperwork has been submitted directly to the judge and attorneys, outside the usual public filing process. And the public was not allowed to attend Wednesday’s hearing.
Prosecutors’ filings about the specifics of their accusations about Uche and the Osundairos have not been made public. But from the bench Linn has said prosecutors allege Uche spoke with the brothers about a few key moments early in the case. Among them: whether to turn over a check to Chicago police — likely the personal check Smollett allegedly used to pay them for their help — and whether to insist upon immunity before talking further with authorities.
According to the brothers’ attorney, Gloria Schmidt Rodriguez, phone records from February 2019 that might prove or disprove the allegations could not be located. The brothers did not have their own cellphones with them at the time of the conversations and could not recall whose phone they used to speak with Uche, she told reporters Wednesday.
That meant that a good portion of the hearing likely relied on the Osundairos’ testimony. Both brothers and their mother were slated to testify.
Schmidt Rodriguez told reporters after the hearing that they were confident the judge would rule with prosecutors and disqualify Uche.
“I think enough evidence and proof was laid out today to support our position,” she said.
Smollett’s defense attorneys and the special prosecutors trying the case declined to comment after the hearing. Uche told reporters the judge instructed them not to give statements.
Smollett is accused of staging a phony hate crime on himself — allegations that made international news in early 2019. Prosecutors have said Smollett acted with the Osundairos’ help, and they are expected to be a central part of prosecutors’ case.
mcrepeau@chicagotribune.com
