A Chicago prosecutor is facing increased pressure to provide more answers as to why charges against “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett were dropped.
Lori Lightfoot, who was elected Chicago’s next mayor earlier this week, told MNSBC on Thursday that Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx must give “a much more fulsome explanation.”
“We cannot create the perception that if you’re rich or famous or both, you got one set of justice and for everybody else it’s something much harsher. That won’t do,” she said.
Lightfoot said law enforcement presented a “compelling” case that Smollett had staged a hate crime against himself, but she did not go as far as calling for Foxx’s resignation as Chicago police did earlier Thursday.
Foxx dropped charges against Smollett last month. Smollett faced 16 felony counts of lying to police about an alleged hate crime. Instead of jail time, he agreed to surrender his $10,000 bond payment and perform community service.
The City of Chicago has demanded Smollett pay $130,000 for the cost of investigating the case, and is reportedly planning to sue the actor if he does not foot the bill.
