Jussie Smollett’s Legal Team Indicate They May File Counter-Suit as President Trump Claims FBI and DOJ Will Review Case
In the wake of the shocking decision to dismiss all 16 felony counts of disorderly conduct against Empire-star Jussie Smollett, Smollett’s legal team and the President of the United States have indicated that the fight over Smollett’s alleged hoax is far from over.
On March 27th, a member of Smollett’s legal team, Tina Glandian, appeared on Good Morning America to speak with host George Stephanopoulos regarding the recent developments in Smollett’s case. During her interview, Glandian maintained Smollett’s innocence and noted that Smollett may seek legal action:
Jussie Smollett’s attorney speaks with @GStephanopoulos about whether or not the “Empire” star will sue. https://t.co/BHjpbroTWb pic.twitter.com/r0vyYZ0BUN
— Good Morning America (@GMA) March 27, 2019
Stephanopoulos: You’ve said clearly you think the police are not telling the truth about Jussie. Are you going to sue?
Glandian: We’re weighing our options now. For Jussie, what’s really important is he really just wants his career and his life back. Again, he did not ask for any of this. He was a victim of a crime. This has completely spiraled out of control and become a political event at this point, and his goal and focus right now is just getting his life back on track.
He’s not even started healing from the initial attack because he’s been dealing with everything that’s happened since then. I don’t know, I mean, we’re shocked at the mayor and the police superintendent doubling down yesterday when the prosecutor after a dispassioned look at the evidence realized that it does not hold up and chose to voluntarily dismiss all counts and expunge his record. So at this point, we’re going to weigh our options and see how this develops.
As of writing, there has been no indication as to who would be targeted by this potential lawsuit or as to when the potential lawsuit could be filed.
Adding to the already expansive list of twists and turns in this case, the following day President Donald Trump tweeted that the DOJ and FBI would be reviewing the case:
FBI & DOJ to review the outrageous Jussie Smollett case in Chicago. It is an embarrassment to our Nation!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 28, 2019
The FBI had previously been involved in the Smollett case, investigating the circumstances and nature of a threatening letter filled with white powder which was sent to Fox offices in Chicago. The letter was later indicated to have allegedly been written by Smollett himself, and the white powder was found to be merely crushed up aspirin. FBI representatives declined to comment on the investigation Wednesday, though this is standard protocol concerning an ongoing investigation. However, the dismissal of the charges against Smollett have prompted a separate inquiry by the FBI, as ABC 7 Chicago reporter Rob Elgas reports:
BREAKING: Two law enforcement officials briefed on the matter tell @ABC the FBI is *reviewing* circumstances surrounding dismissal of criminal charges against Jussie Smollett. ABC News is told this is not an investigation. It is a “review” or “inquiry”.
— Rob Elgas (@RobElgasABC7) March 27, 2019
MORE: As the @ABC7Chicago I-Team revealed this morning, records obtained from the Chicago police file on the Smollett case show the FBI was already involved in part of the investigation. 1/2
— Rob Elgas (@RobElgasABC7) March 27, 2019
In that report it was revealed that CPD forwarded a copy of a search warrant pertaining to Jussie Smollett’s Apple iCloud account to an FBI analyst. 2/2
— Rob Elgas (@RobElgasABC7) March 27, 2019
On Thursday morning, Chicago Mayor Emanuel joined host Steve Cochran on WGN Radio and noted that Chicago Police will attempt to directly recoup their costs for Smollett’s investigation from Smollett himself:
“The police are right now finalizing the cost that was used, police resources to come to the understanding this was a hoax and not a real hate crime. What we spent. The corporation counsel, once they have the finalized and feel good about the numbers, will then send a letter to Jussie Smollett and his attorneys, trying to recoup those costs for the city. It is a small way of both acknowledging, one, guilt, two, that we spent these resources and the taxpayers deserve, at minimum — because I think there’s a whole other level of ethical costs, because he’s still walking around, ‘Hey, I’m innocent, everything I said from day one is true’ — that actually we’re going to get the resources back. But come with those resources is, implicitly, if you pay it, that the city spent money to uncover what the grand jury discovered.”
Emanuel also commented on Trump’s announcement, stating that he believes the President should “sit this one out”:
“In my own view, President Trump, just sit this one out, okay? The fact is, you’re a guy, I take umbrage that you have a person sitting in the Oval Office who drew a moral equivalency in Virginia between those who were fighting bigotry and those who were perpetuating bigotry.”
What do you make of Smollett’s lawyers thinking about suing the city of Chicago? What about President Trump weighing in on the case? What do you make of the FBI’s involvement in the case?
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