Jussie Smollett Charges Dropped

CNN)Prosecutors who dropped felony charges against actor Jussie Smollett over his report of a hate crime attack "have fundamentally misled the public on the law and circumstances surrounding the dismissal," an Illinois lawyers group said.The way Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx and her office resolved the case also was "abnormal and unfamiliar to those who practice law," wrote the Illinois Prosecutors Bar Association.

he scathing statement, issued Thursday, follows claims by Foxx and her top deputy, Joe Magats, that "alternative prosecution," like the resolution brokered in Smollett's case, is not uncommon and is available to all defendants, celebrity or not. Smollet, 36, agreed to forfeit $10,000 bail and complete community service in exchange for the dismissal of 16 charges alleging he'd orchestrated a fake racist, anti-gay attack on himself.Further, Foxx and her office "falsely informed the public" that sealing the criminal case was "mandatory," the prosecutors' organization said. And a special prosecutor should have been appointed when Foxx, citing familiarity with a potential witness, recused herself from the case, the group insisted.Meantime, Chicago's corporation counsel on Thursday asked Smollett to pay $130,106.15 to cover the cost of the investigation into his claims of an attack.

Calls for an investigation grow

Smollett, who is black and gay, told police two men attacked him on January 29, yelling racist and homophobic slurs while striking him, police said. Smollett said the incident ended with a noose placed around his neck and bleach poured on him, police said.Chicago police investigated the case as a possible hate crime, then later said they believed the attack was staged by Smollett to bolster his profile and career. A grand jury indicted Smollett in March on 16 counts of disorderly conduct.

Original article by Cnn.

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