Jussie Smollett’s sweet deal just got a little less so. Thursday, a judge ordered the actor’s criminal records unsealed.
Smollet, now infamous for allegedly paying a couple of dudes to stage a hate crime, had his record sealed as part of a sweetheart deal that enraged Chicago’s entire political machine.
From NBC Chicago:
A Cook County judge has ordered the sealed file surrounding the case of actor Jussie Smollett should be unsealed.Judge Steven Watkins issued his order Thursday after previously hearing oral arguments on whether the files should remain hidden from the public on May 16.Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said a review of the documents is underway and they will be released by June 3. “State’s Attorney Foxx is pleased to be able to provide the public with even greater transparency in this matter than was previously possible because of the sealing order,” her office said in a statement.Media attorney Natalie Spears argued then that there was no good cause for his case to remain sealed because he was so public throughout the ordeal, and that it would be harmful to the public to keep it under wraps.Smollett’s attorney Brian Watson contended that the “Empire” actor has a right to privacy under various statutes that are afforded to thousands of other people every year, and that the media was allowed to cover the process of the case itself, so the public was not barred from learning any new developments.On Thursday, Watkins said that Smollett had “not shown good cause to rebut the public presumption of access.” It was not immediately clear when the file would be made available to the public.
This is only a drop in the cascade of legal troubles for Smollett.
In April, the City of Chicago sued Smollett after the actor failed to reimburse the city the costs (estimated at $130,000) to investigate a “false police report.”
The Osundo brothers, who Smollett allegedly hired to “attack” him, sued Smollett’s attorneys for defamation.
Kim Foxx, Cook County’s State’s Attorney, was subpoenaed over her handling of the Smollett case. This was after she accused critics of racism.
For our full coverage of this ongoing hoax saga, see here.
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