Judge drops charges in Jussie Smollett hoax case

By Mona Austin

On March 28, the hate crime hoax case involving actor Jussie Smollet was close suddenly.

Prosecutors do not believe Jussie Smollett is innocent as he continued to claim and are now fighting to find a way to have court documents unsealed legally to prove his guilt. On Tuesday, Smollet was cleared of all 16 felony charges related to an allegedly staged physical assault that was investigated as a possible hate crime. That's just one aspect of the case that has the rest of the country still asking questions about the bizarre situation. Cook County police also say they think the actor is guilty and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel called the judge's decision a "whitewash of justice." 

The two men who were accused have also walked away free. The embattled Empire star was assigned community service and required to pay a $10,000 fine. After posting bail, the 36-year-old had returned to work on the Fox drama.

Emmanuel said closing the case "sends a clear message that if you're in a position of influence and power you'll get treated one way, other people will be treated another way. . .There is no accountability, then, in the system. It is wrong, full stop."

On social media many people compared Smollett getting off to O.J. Simpson committing murder.

Chicago police "stuck to their guns" on the matter, but were willing to move on from a situation that appeared to have procedural errors muddy the path to justice.

“We agreed to have the charges dismissed if he performed community service and paid the $10,000 fine, which he did. That in no way implies he is innocent or exonerated,” Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said. “Now it’s time to turn the page and move on to what we really do in the City of Chicago.” This is a page the POTUS does not want to turn yet, even though the case is not federal and the country has many other more pressing priorities that need his attention.