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| Jussie Smollett Case: Special Prosecutor Appointed | Jussie Smollett Case: Special Prosecutor Appointed |
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| A judge in Chicago on Friday named a special prosecutor who will investigate how local officials handled the case against Jussie Smollett, who was accused of paying two acquaintances to attack him, making it look like a racist and homophobic hate crime. | A judge in Chicago on Friday named a special prosecutor who will investigate how local officials handled the case against Jussie Smollett, who was accused of paying two acquaintances to attack him, making it look like a racist and homophobic hate crime. |
| The new special prosecutor, Dan K. Webb, a Republican, is a former United States attorney and worked as a special counsel in the Iran-contra affair. The announcement came two months after Judge Michael P. Toomin of Cook County ordered that a lawyer be appointed to take another look at the case. The judge was charged with finding someone to assess whether there was any misconduct in the way the case was managed and whether there is justification for renewing the prosecution of Mr. Smollett, whose felony charges were dropped in March. | |
| Mr. Webb gained international recognition for prosecuting Adm. John M. Poindexter, a former national security adviser to President Ronald Reagan, in the Iran-contra affair. In his current role as an executive chairman of the international law firm Winston & Strawn, he is known for defending prominent white collar clients, including George H. Ryan, the a former Illinois governor, and is considered to be one of the most high-profile lawyers in Chicago. | |
| Despite being consistently associated with Republicans, Mr. Webb supported Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election. | |
| With a case this polarizing, the special prosecutor position likely comes with several months of public scrutiny. At least two state’s attorneys in Illinois have said publicly that they had turned down the position, saying they had no interest in draining their own county’s coffers with what could turn into a lengthy and expensive investigation. | With a case this polarizing, the special prosecutor position likely comes with several months of public scrutiny. At least two state’s attorneys in Illinois have said publicly that they had turned down the position, saying they had no interest in draining their own county’s coffers with what could turn into a lengthy and expensive investigation. |
| [A timeline of the Jussie Smollett case.] | [A timeline of the Jussie Smollett case.] |
| In explaining his decision to appoint a special prosecutor, Judge Toomin said that the Cook County state’s attorney, Kim Foxx, who was responsible for prosecuting Mr. Smollett, did not follow the proper procedure in recusing herself. Mr. Toomin said that Ms. Foxx should have asked for a special prosecutor when she separated herself from the case in February; instead, she asked her deputy to take over the prosecution. Ms. Foxx said she recused herself to avoid any perception that she had a conflict of interest after disclosing that she had communicated with representatives of Mr. Smollett’s when he was still considered a victim in the case. | In explaining his decision to appoint a special prosecutor, Judge Toomin said that the Cook County state’s attorney, Kim Foxx, who was responsible for prosecuting Mr. Smollett, did not follow the proper procedure in recusing herself. Mr. Toomin said that Ms. Foxx should have asked for a special prosecutor when she separated herself from the case in February; instead, she asked her deputy to take over the prosecution. Ms. Foxx said she recused herself to avoid any perception that she had a conflict of interest after disclosing that she had communicated with representatives of Mr. Smollett’s when he was still considered a victim in the case. |
| When a retired judge from Illinois petitioned the court to assign a special prosecutor to get the “whole truth” of what happened in the case, Ms. Foxx and Mr. Smollett resisted such an appointment. Mr. Smollett’s legal team attempted to get the case reassigned to another judge and asked that the court prohibit a special prosecutor from reopening prosecution of Mr. Smollett. Judge Toomin swiftly batted down Mr. Smollett’s request to intervene in the case. | When a retired judge from Illinois petitioned the court to assign a special prosecutor to get the “whole truth” of what happened in the case, Ms. Foxx and Mr. Smollett resisted such an appointment. Mr. Smollett’s legal team attempted to get the case reassigned to another judge and asked that the court prohibit a special prosecutor from reopening prosecution of Mr. Smollett. Judge Toomin swiftly batted down Mr. Smollett’s request to intervene in the case. |
| Ms. Foxx’s office’s abrupt decision to abandon all felony charges against Mr. Smollett angered some city officials, including Rahm Emanuel, the mayor at the time, and the police superintendent. The city sued Mr. Smollett, demanding that he reimburse them for more than 1,800 overtime hours spent investigating his hate crime report. Mr. Smollett asked that the lawsuit be dismissed, and a federal judge is scheduled consider his request in October. | Ms. Foxx’s office’s abrupt decision to abandon all felony charges against Mr. Smollett angered some city officials, including Rahm Emanuel, the mayor at the time, and the police superintendent. The city sued Mr. Smollett, demanding that he reimburse them for more than 1,800 overtime hours spent investigating his hate crime report. Mr. Smollett asked that the lawsuit be dismissed, and a federal judge is scheduled consider his request in October. |
| [More about what’s left to investigate in the Smollett case.] | [More about what’s left to investigate in the Smollett case.] |
| Mr. Smollett’s legal team maintains that their client did not organize a hate crime in January and that two acquaintances, Abimbola Osundairo and Olabinjo Osundairo, attacked him near his apartment building in downtown Chicago, shouted slurs at him and placed a noose around his neck. The brothers, claiming that Mr. Smollett paid them $3,500 to stage the attack, filed a defamation lawsuit against Mr. Smollett’s lawyers. | Mr. Smollett’s legal team maintains that their client did not organize a hate crime in January and that two acquaintances, Abimbola Osundairo and Olabinjo Osundairo, attacked him near his apartment building in downtown Chicago, shouted slurs at him and placed a noose around his neck. The brothers, claiming that Mr. Smollett paid them $3,500 to stage the attack, filed a defamation lawsuit against Mr. Smollett’s lawyers. |
| Mr. Smollett, who is best known for playing Jamal Lyon on the Fox drama “Empire,” was written out of the show’s most recent season after the police announced that they believed Mr. Smollett planned the attack himself. In June, Fox’s chief executive, Charlie Collier, confirmed at a Television Critics Association event that Mr. Smollett would not be returning for the show’s sixth and final season, which debuts in September. | Mr. Smollett, who is best known for playing Jamal Lyon on the Fox drama “Empire,” was written out of the show’s most recent season after the police announced that they believed Mr. Smollett planned the attack himself. In June, Fox’s chief executive, Charlie Collier, confirmed at a Television Critics Association event that Mr. Smollett would not be returning for the show’s sixth and final season, which debuts in September. |