Jussie Smollett speaks out after reaching civil settlement with city of Chicago
Actor Jussie Smollett is speaking out after reaching a settlement with the city of Chicago in a civil case related to the city's efforts to recover costs from its investigation into a 2019 incident that authorities claim was a staged hate crime. Smollett has always maintained he is innocent.
Smollett addressed the resolution in a public statement shared Friday on Instagram.
"Over six years ago, after it was reported I had been jumped, City Officials in Chicago set out to convince the public that I willfully set an assault against myself. This false narrative has left a stain on my character that will not soon disappear," he wrote.
He added, "These officials wanted my money and wanted my confession for something I did not do. Today, it should be clear… They have received neither."
Smollett said his decision to settle "was not the most difficult one to make," explaining, "I was presented with an opportunity to make a charitable donation in exchange for the case being dismissed."
Calling Chicago his former home, he noted, "Making a donation to benefit Chicago communities that are too often neglected by those in power will always be something I support."
Smollett also announced a separate $10,000 donation to the Chicago Torture Justice Center, writing, "To anyone who has had to prove they have in fact been violated, you know how difficult this can be to navigate. I stand with and for you."
In March 2019, Smollett forfeited his $10,000 bond to the city and agreed to perform 16 hours of community service as part of a separate agreement to drop all criminal charges related to the alleged false report, according to then-Cook County first assistant state attorney Joe Magats.
The city filed a lawsuit in 2019 over $130,000, which the Chicago Police Department said it had spent investigating the actor's claims that he had been attacked in a racially and politically motivated incident.
In November 2019, Smollett filed a counter lawsuit against the city of Chicago, claiming that authorities "maliciously" prosecuted him "in bad faith" and filed criminal charges against him "without probable cause."
The counter lawsuit was filed in response to a lawsuit the city filed against Smollett in April, requesting $130,000 in civil penalties, damages and attorney's fees and costs arising from Smollett's alleged "false statements."
Two brothers -- Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo -- later claimed that Smollett paid them $3,500 to help him orchestrate and stage the crime after Smollett allegedly became upset that a letter threatening him, sent to the Fox studio where the television series "Empire" was filmed, did not get enough attention, according to police.
Police later accused Smollett of writing the letter. The brothers were not charged.
As part of the new settlement agreement, Smollett will donate $50,000 to Building Brighter Futures Center for the Arts, a local nonprofit serving underprivileged youth in Chicago through arts and education programming.
The donation was made in exchange for the dismissal of the city's lawsuit against Smollett, according to a statement released Thursday by the city's Department of Law.
In an official statement, the department said, "The City believes this settlement provides a fair, constructive, and conclusive resolution, allowing all the parties to close this six-year-old chapter and move forward."
