Chicago sues ‘Empire’ actor Jussie Smollett to recover the cost of hate crime investigation
Jussie Smollett, pictured at a March 14 court appearance in Chicago. By Sonia Rao Sonia Rao Pop culture reporter Email Bio Follow April 11 at 8:07 PM The city of Chicago sued Jussie Smollett for more than $130,000 on Thursday to recover the cost of police overtime spent looking into the alleged hate crime against him.
The “Empire” actor has been accused of orchestrating the Jan. 29 assault, during which he claims two men yelled racial and homophobic slurs while beating him, pouring an unknown chemical substance on him and wrapping a rope around his neck.
Mayor Rahm Emmanuel joined other city officials in criticizing the prosecutors’s decision, calling it “a whitewash of justice.” Two days later, the Department of Law sent Smollett a letter that threatened legal action if he didn’t pay for the overtime costs within a week. It also noted that, if prosecuted, municipal code states that he could potentially be fined up to three times the amount. Smollett refused to pay.
The city filed the lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court, stating that the Chicago Police Department “expended significant resources” looking into Smollett’s claims. Police say over two dozen officers and detectives took part in the weeks-long investigation, ultimately incurring 1,836 hours of overtime pay, worth $130,106 in total. The city will also seek attorneys’ fees and litigation costs, as well as a civil penalty of $1,000 for each of Smollett’s alleged lies.
Representatives for Smollett, who has been written out of the last two episodes of “Empire’s” current season, declined to comment on the city’s lawsuit.
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