Lovecraft Country star Jurnee Smollett is finally breaking her silence on brother Jussie's alleged hate crime attack from last year. She notes that it has been "one of the most painful things" that her family has ever had to go through. In January 2019, Jussie Smollett said he was attacked by two men who threw bleach on his skin, put a noose around his neck, and shouted racial and homophobic slurs at him. The attack quickly became huge news around the world. However, Smollett, who was a star on Empire, was later accused of staging the whole thing.

For Jurnee Smollett and her family, she stands behind Jussie and she believes he was truly attacked. While the whole thing has been very difficult on the Smollett family, it sounds like they all currently support Jussie. Up until now, Jurnee had never talked about the alleged attack publicly. She had this to say.

"It's been f***ing painful, one of the most painful things my family's ever experienced -- to love someone as much as we love my brother, and to watch someone who you love that much go through something like this, that is so public, has been devastating. I was already in a very dark space for a number of reasons, and I've tried not to let it make me pessimistic. But everyone who knows me knows that I love my brother and I believe my brother."

Jurnee Smollett continued about her brother Jussie Smollett, noting, "We are blessed to have a community of people who know him and know that he wouldn't do this. I mean, f***, man, I look at him sometimes and I'm like 'He's so strong.'" Jurnee Smollett was not able to talk further about Jussie's situation since it is currently an ongoing case. Jussie Smollett has maintained his innocence this whole time and denies that he staged the hate crime with two other men.

In January 2019, Jussie Smollett made a police report about the incident. Less than a month later, he was arrested for filing a false police report with the Chicago PD. The charges against Smollett were eventually dropped in May 2019, but in January 2020, a grand jury brought new charges against him, which is where the case currently sits. In February of this year, Smollett was indicted again by a Cook County grand jury on six counts pertaining to making four false police reports.

The latest news on the Jussie Smollett legal battles finds he and his lawyers seeking video tape of an interview between two key witnesses and his attorney to be used in court. Smollett's lawyers believe that the video will present evidence of a conspiracy against their client. As of this writing, a ruling has not yet been made. It was also recently revealed that the Osundairo Brothers, who allegedly helped stage the attack against Smollett, are no longer cooperating with prosecutors because they have yet to have items seized from their apartment returned from police. The interview with Jurnee Smollett was originally conducted by The Hollywood Reporter.