Update 06/21/2019 1:30pm:

It appears that Jussie Smollett isn't entirely in the clear after all, as although his criminal case was abruptly dropped back in late March, it's just been reported that a special prosecutor has been appointed to review the way prosecutors handled the case.

A Chicago judge issued the order by saying: "If reasonable grounds exist to further prosecute Smollett, in the interest of justice the special prosecutor may take such action," while adding that "unprecedented irregularities identified in this case" warrants the appointment of a special prosecutor.

Using a metaphor to describe how the State's Attorney Kim Foxx erred in the case, the judge poetically stated that "there was no master on the bridge to guide the ship as it floundered through unchartered waters. And it ultimately lost its bearings."

Source: TMZ

Update 04/08/2019 2:24pm:

Previously, Chicago State’s Attorney Kim Foxx was reportedly facing pressure to push the issue on further prosecution for Jussie Smollett and his case. However, Foxx wrote an op-ed where she explained why she dropped the charges. Now, Foxx has doubled down on her decision and explained even further why her decision remains.

While at an event for Jesse Jackson, Foxx delivered a speech and said: “The efforts that I’ve had on criminal-justice reform, that were once celebrated by many in this county, are now being attacked because of one case and one celebrity.”

She also said “have been asking myself for the last two weeks what is this really about. As someone who has lived in this city, who came up in the projects of this city to serve as the first African American woman in this role, it is disheartening to me … that when we get in these positions somehow the goalposts change. This is personal.”

source: Chicago Tribune

Original 03/30/2019 4:14pm:

According to reports, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is reportedly open to an outside investigation being conducted into her office’s decision to have all the charges against ‘Empire’ actor Jussie Smollett dropped.

Foxx revealed the information via an op-ed she wrote for the Chicago Tribune this past Friday night. The piece was a review on the prosecutors’ decision to drop all 16 felony counts against Smollett.

Foxx said “In determining whether or not to pursue charges, prosecutors are required to balance the severity of the crime against the likelihood of securing a conviction. For a variety of reasons ... my office believed the likelihood of securing a conviction was not certain.” Foxx noted that some of the evidence in Smollett’s case made a chance of conviction “uncertain.”

Police still say the actor staged the incident to push his career forward. As a result, officials want Smollett to pay over $130,000 to cover the costs of the investigation.

Source: apnews.com