Closing arguments set in actor Jussie Smollett's trial

Closing arguments are scheduled for Wednesday morning in the case against former 'Empire' actor Jussie Smollett, who is accused of staging a racist, anti-gay attack against himself in downtown Chicago to get publicity.

The jury is then expected to begin deliberating whether Smollett is guilty on six counts of a low-level felony for lying to Chicago police about the January 2019 attack.

Taking the witness stand earlier this week, Smollett repeatedly denied the attack was a fake, telling a prosecutor "there was no hoax on my part" and that two brothers who testified against him are "liars."

Smollett called the Osundairo brothers' testimony that he paid them US$3,500 to carry out the fake attack "100% false," and described how he was the victim of a hate crime while walking in his neighborhood early on Jan. 29, 2019. He also testified that a $3,500 check he wrote for Abimbola Osundairo was for meal and workout plans because he was trying to get toned for an upcoming music video.

Under cross-examination by special prosecutor Dan Webb, Smollett said Tuesday that a few days before the alleged attack he collected Osundairo in his car to go work out and that Osundairo's brother, Olabingo, came along. Smollett denied the brothers' testimony that they circled the area where the alleged attack occurred three times as a "dry run" for the fake assault. He said it wasn't unusual for him to drive around in circles, and that he cancelled the plan to work out because he didn't want to work out with Olabingo Osundairo, whom he hadn't invited along.