An Illinois judge ordered the case file for actor Jussie Smollet’s alleged hate crime hoax to be unsealed. The judge made the decision on May 23.
Spears’s argument counters those made by Smollett’s attorneys that unsealing the records could impact Smollett’s future prospects.
The court heard arguments for media organizations last week seeking to unseal the case, the Chicago Tribune reported. Smollett’s lawyers worked to have the files sealed moments after charges were dropped against Smollett for faking a hate crime.
Chicago police brought charges against Smollett after they determined he paid $3,500 to two people he knew who are brothers to help him stage an attack, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx inexplicably dropped all charges against Smollett. Now Illinois Appellate Judge Sheila O’Brien is looking to appoint a special prosecutor to look into how Foxx’s office handled the case.
Tchen had served as Michelle Obama’s chief of staff during her time as first lady. When a process server went to Tchen’s law firm to serve the subpoena, Tchen refused to come to the lobby, Edward Ryan, who runs the firm that sent the process server, told the Chicago Sun-Times.
“I don’t know why she’d turn it down. She’ll be served eventually,” Ryan told the Sun-Times.
According to the Sun-Times, Tchen issued a statement back in March relating to the situation:
“Shortly after Mr. Smollett reported he was attacked, as a family friend, I contacted Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, who I also know from prior work together. My sole activity was to put the chief prosecutor in the case in touch with an alleged victim’s family who had concerns about how the investigation was being characterized in public.”
The Sun-Times said that Tchen gave Foxx’s phone number to a relative of Smollett before the charges were dropped.
After earlier speculation, Fox extended Smollett’s contract for Season 6 of “Empire,” even though they haven’t said specifically whether or not he will make an appearance on the show.