An Illinois special prosecutor tapped to probe the handling of the Jussie Smollett case found "substantial abuses of discretion and operational failures" by Cook County officials who oversaw the original charges against the actor, BuzzFeed News reports.
On Monday, Dan Webb said in a news release that his investigation into the handling of the former "Empire” star's case found a "major failure" in the state attorney's decision to drop charges against Smollett.
But his investigation did not turn up any evidence that warranted any criminal charges against Illinois State Attorney Kimberly Foxx or her colleagues.
Webb said Foxx made numerous false or misleading public statements in the wake of the decision to drop criminal charges against the actor, according to BuzzFeed News.
Smollett was facing more than a dozen felony counts for allegedly filing a false police report. Smollett, who is Black and gay, claimed to be the victim of a hate crime. He filed a police report in January 2019 claiming he had been attacked in the middle of the night by two men who yelled MAGA chants and anti-gay slurs, put a rope around his neck, and poured a chemical substance on him.
According to authorities, he actually paid two brothers to stage the attack in order to bring attention and publicity that he could use during salary negotiations for the show he starred in.
He has denied staging the incident, but was required to complete 15 hours of community service and forfeit a $10,000 bond as part of the decision to drop the original charges against him.
In February, Webb filed six new counts of disorderly conduct against Smollett, saying that "further prosecution ... is in the interests of justice." That case is still pending.
Webb said the original dismissal of the case "surprised" and "shocked" many Cook County officials he interviewed. He said prosecutors weren't given any new information between the time the charges were filed and when the case was dropped.
Webb also noted that Foxx continued to communicate with Smollett's sister, Jurnee, through phone calls and text massages after learning that the actor was no longer being investigated as a victim, but rather as a suspect.
Ultimately, Webb determined he didn't find any evidence of criminal behavior by the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. He also noted he found no evidence that Foxx or her prosecutors were improperly swayed or influenced by third parties.
Webb said parts of the investigation are still under seal, but he would file a motion to release the rest of the information in order to restore public trust in the justice system.
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