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On Tuesday, Jussie Smollett received bad news when a federal judge denied the lawsuit against the actor from being dismissed.
Early this year, Jussie Smollett – a gay, black male – claimed that he was attacked in Chicago by two men who were motivated by racism and homophobia. The media covered the story extensively and the Chicago Police Department spent nearly 1,900 hours investigating the alleged crime.
The investigation did not go Smollett’s way, however, as police said there was a “mountain of evidence” showing that the entire attack was staged. Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said that the actor “took advantage of the pain and anger of racism to promote his career.”
Jussie Smollett was then charged with filing a false report and his public support crumbled. Later, in a surprise move, the Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx dropped the false report charges against him. Smollett was forced to forfeit his bail.
The lawsuit against Smollett demands that he reimburse the police department $130,000 for the investigation. Smollett hoped to have the lawsuit dismissed, saying that he couldn’t have known how much the police department would spend investigating his alleged false claims.
A Special Prosecutor, Dan Webb, was assigned to the case in August. The judge said that the whole case was riddled with “unprecedented irregularities.”
Smollett maintains his innocence, and it remains to be seen if he will be charged with staging the attack by the new Special Prosecutor.
For now, the lawsuit against Jussie Smollett can proceed.
Most know Jussie Smollett from his role as Jamal Lyon on Fox’s “Empire.” He was cut from the show’s sixth season after he was accused of faking the attack and filing a false report by the Chicago Police Department.
In an interview with Vulture, Lee Daniels, the creator of “Empire,” said that he was “beyond embarrassed” by the accusations against Smollett. He had initially supported Smollett.
Jussie Smollett’s acting career may be permanently damaged by the scandal. If the allegations against him are true, and he staged an attack in an attempt to increase his exposure as an actor, then this backfire could have the exact opposite effect.
