Chicago's image is muddied by crime and inequity. The Jussie Smollett case doesn't help The stunning decision by prosecutors to drop all charges against “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett for staging an attack made to look like a hate crime is another smudge for a city whose reputation has been tarnished by violent crime and questionable police practices.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office announcement Tuesday that effectively clears Smollett, who earlier this month was indicted on 16 counts of disorderly conduct for filing a false report, seemed to come out of the blue.
Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said that neither he nor his detectives were given any forewarning about the prosecutor’s move. Nor were any witnesses who helped police and prosecutors with their investigation — a courtesy typically offered by prosecutors to citizens assisting a case, said police department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.
Media who have been covering the ongoing saga of Smollett learned from the actor’s legal team that he was headed to court for an emergency hearing shortly before the proceedings were set to begin.
“They chose to hide behind secrecy and broker a deal to circumvent the judicial system,” said an angry Johnson, who learned that the State’s Attorney’s office was dropping the charges against Smollett while he was attending a police officer graduation and promotion ceremony.
The State’s Attorney’s office said dropping the charges did not amount to the office exonerating Smollett. As part of the deal, Smollett agreed to forfeit $10,000 bond that he posted after being charged to the city of Chicago.
“After reviewing all of the facts and circumstances of the case, including Mr. Smollett’s volunteer service in the community and agreement to forfeit his bond to the City of Chicago, we believe this outcome is a just disposition and appropriate resolution to this case,” Tandra Simonton, a spokeswoman for the State’s Attorney’s Office, said in a statement.
Prosecutors were effectively making the case that in a city with no shortage of serious crime, pursuing Smollett wasn’t worth the effort.
Indeed, Chicago has had one of the highest per capita homicide rates among major U.S. cities in recent years. Police have recovered more than 1,800 illegally possessed weapons off the city’s streets already this year. The state’s crime lab is so overwhelmed that it has a backlog of more than 5,000 cases — including hundreds of Chicago homicide cases — that are awaiting DNA testing, Illinois State Police officials testified Monday.
Did Michelle Obama play a role in Jussie Smollett’s dropped charges?
The whole Jussie Smollett situation stinks to many, including my colleagues. It appears that he essentially paid to have his name cleared by letting the city keep his $10,000 bond and doing 18 hours of community service for Jesse Jackson. That’s it. Charges dropped.
Chicago police aren’t happy about it.
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