Source: Splash News / Splash News
Judge Appoints Special Attorney To Investigate Jussie Smollett Case
Just when you thought the Jussie Smollett drama was behind us, and new layer of the case has been unraveled. On Friday, a Chicago judge appointed a special prosecutor to look into why state attorneys abruptly dropped charges against the actor after accusing him of staging a racist, anti-gay attack against himself.
Reports say that Judge Michael Toomin’s appointment of former U.S. attorney Dan Webb raises the possibility that the special prosecutor could bring new charges against the former “Empire” actor. According to the Chicago Tribune:
As special prosecutor, Webb will bring on a team of attorneys to assist in the probe. They will wield extensive power to follow the probe where it leads, including investigating “the actions of any person or office involved in all aspects of the case,” Toomin has said. They could also file new charges against Smollett — or anyone else they reasonably believe committed a crime.
You may recall that the Cook County state’s attorney’s office charged Smollett in February with 16 counts of disorderly conduct for orchestrating the incident, then they abruptly dropped all of the charges a month later with little explanation. The state’s attorney’s office released a statement on Friday saying:
“We pledge our full cooperation to the special prosecutor appointed today to review this matter.”
This shall be interesting.
Comments
Bossip Comment Policy
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.