Jussie Smollett will not have the City of Chicago sully his good name.
The Empire star’s lawyer fired off an angry letter in response to the Windy City sending the actor a bill to recover the $130,000 it cost to investigate the hate crime he has been accused of making up.
As we reported, the bill was sent as part of a city ordinance in which those who file false claims can be fined “up to three times the amount of damages the city sustains.” Smollett missed the payment deadline, and now city officials have confirmed they plan on filing a lawsuit to get the money from him.
Related: Chris Rock BLASTS Jussie On Stage
But the 36-year-old isn’t planning on paying a dime — in fact, he might very well file a lawsuit of his own against the city for what his team claims are attempts to defame him!
In the letter, attorney Mark Geragos said Jussie “will not be intimidated” by Chi-Town’s legal threat. He called the claims that his client faked the “attack” because he was dissatisfied with his Empire salary “false and defamatory.”
Geragos also maintained Jussie’s initial claims: that he was the victim of an attack by two people shouting racist and homophobic slurs.
After Chicago police investigated the actor’s initial report, and apparently spent over $130K to do so, Smollett was charged with 16 felony counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly paying the Osundairo brothers to stage the attack on him.
Related: Smollett Prosecutor Explains Why She Dropped All The Charges
But in a surprise twist, Cook County prosecutors abruptly dropped all charges against Smollett in a hearing last week — enraging the city police department, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and basically everyone who was following the case on Twitter.
The city issued the bill to Smollett two days after the hearing, warning that they might sue him if he didn’t pay by Thursday.
If the city does file suit, Geragos warned in his letter, then Smollett’s legal team would demand to view all the evidence from the case, including the evidence that was never handed over to defense before the charges were dropped.
Geragos also insisted that Smollett’s team would have to question Mayor Emanuel and police Superintendent Eddie Johnson if the city moves forward with the lawsuit, writing:
“In light of their apparent vested interest in the matter, we are confident that Mayor Emanuel and Superintendent Johnson will not object to providing their testimony under oath. Mr. Smollett’s preference remains, however, that this matter be closed and that he be allowed to move on with his life.”
The letter went on to state that Smollett’s attorneys would also want to take town a sworn testimony from the Osundairo brothers, their attorney, and their attorney’s husband.
The Emanuel administration, meanwhile, confirmed that a lawsuit was being drafted for Jussie in Cook County Circuit Court as of Thursday. Only time will tell if the state backs down from this possible defamation lawsuit… but we doubt it.
[Image via FayesVision/WENN]
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