Jussie Smollett Prosecutor’s Office Releases 2,000 Pages Of Shifting Justifications
The Cook County prosecutor’s office released 2,000 pages of documents on Friday regarding the Jussie Smollett fake hate crime. The move comes shortly after Chicago police released their documents in the case, and offers a counterpoint to the allegations that the prosecutor’s office appeared to show favoritism toward Smollett.
Cook County State Attorney Kim Foxx had one interesting point in the documents. She claimed she recused herself from the investigation after false rumors surfaced that she was related to Smollett.
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Foxx claimed in the document trove that she recused herself to avoid “even the perception of a conflict.”
But the new documents show that Foxx was immersed in the case even as she publicly vowed to stay out of it.
Smollett faced 16 felony counts related to making a false report. Foxx’s office dropped the charges on March 26 without any admission of guilt by Smollett, a move which caused a firestorm of criticism.
The new documents show that Foxx texted a deputy after her alleged recusal to say that the office had overcharged the actor. Foxx texted: “Sooo …… I’m recused, but when people accuse us of overcharging cases … 16 counts on a class 4 becomes exhibit A.”
Her colleague responded, saying: “Yes. I can see where that can be seen as excessive.”
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