Internal memo shows state attorney office scrambling for cover, as FBI reportedly probes decision to drop Smollett charges

 

(FILE PHOTO video screenshot)

The embattled Illinois state attorney whose office chose to drop charges against disgraced Hollywood actor Jussie Smollett this week for reasons that still remain unclear has reportedly been plotting behind the scenes to reduce the PR damage she’s suffered because of the stunning ruling.

An internal email from Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office obtained by Fox News specifically shows her or someone in her office requesting that all staff members dig up other examples from the past of the office essentially letting a suspect off the hook at the last minute.

“We are looking for examples of cases, felony preferable, where we, in (exercising) our discretion, have entered into verbal agreements with defense attorneys to dismiss charges against an offender if certain conditions were met,” the email reads.

“Nobody is in trouble, we are just looking for further examples of how we, as prosecutors, use our discretion in a way that restores the victim…”

Learn more about the email below:

According to an ABC affiliate in Chicago, “the FBI is reviewing the circumstances surrounding the dismissal of criminal charges against ‘Empire’ actor Jussie Smollett, two law enforcement officials confirmed.”

Foxx has argued publicly that her office decided to eschew prosecuting Smollett on felony  counts of disorderly conduct — and this despite him being indicted by a grand jury — and instead run him through a so-called “alternative prosecution model” because the actor had apparently been kind enough to forfeit his $10,000 bond and perform some community service.

What a nice guy …

Plus, save for smearing millions of Americans by claiming in late January that two white Trump supporters had assaulted him, poured bleach on him and placed a noose around his neck, all while allegedly yelling racial and homophobic slurs, Smollett had never before committed a criminal act.

“When we look at similarly situated people charged with this offense, without a background, I think in this case, justice was, um, appropriate,” Foxx told local station WFLD on Wednesday.

She also pushed back accusations that her department has been engaging in damage control.

“As a prosecutor, as an elected official, I want to have context. I want to be able to tell people and point people to specific examples, so it wasn’t about PR. It really was about explaining to the public about how we do our work,” she said, referring to the email obtained by Fox.

Listen:

Foxx certainly has a lot of explaining to do.

Why, for instance, did she allow former first lady Michelle Obama’s former chief of staff, Tina Tchen, to intervene in the actor’s prosecution? Previous reports show that last month Tchen convinced Foxx to ask Chicago authorities to transfer the case to the FBI.

After Tchen’s intervention, Foxx recused herself from Smollett’s case, though she failed at the time to inform the public of why she was recusing herself. It wasn’t until mid-March that the Chicago Sun-Times became aware of Tchen’s intervention and published a piece highlighting it to the public.

It likewise wasn’t til just this week that the media learned that the state’s attorney never technically recused herself. She simply handed the case off to her assistant. This allowed her to bypass a state law that mandates a special prosecutor be appointed in such circumstances.

“[T]he State’s Attorney may file a petition to recuse himself or herself from a cause or proceeding for any other reason he or she deems appropriate and the court shall appoint a special prosecutor as provided in this Section,” the law explicitly reads.

This never happened, and now the public knows why.

In a statement issued to the news purveyor Patch on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Foxx’s office admitted that she “did not formally recuse herself or the [State’s Attorney] Office based on any actual conflict of interest. As a result, she did not have to seek the appointment of a special prosecutor.”

When Fox publicly announced in February that she’d recused herself, “it was a colloquial use of the term rather than in its legal sense,” the spokesperson added.

How clever … and inordinately corrupt.

Her clear-cut corruption may run even deeper, according to some social media users:

HERE’S WHAT YOU’RE MISSING …

Nearly everybody — except for the most far-left of radicals — has condemned Foxx’s handling of the Smollett case, including the National District Attorneys Association, which reportedly represents roughly 2,700 prosecutors’ offices around the country.

“First, when a chief prosecutor recuses him or herself, the recusal must apply to the entire office, not just the elected or appointed prosecutor. This is consistent with best practices for prosecutors’ offices around the country,” the association said in a statement to Fox.

“Second, prosecutors should not take advice from politically connected friends of the accused. Each case should be approached with the goal of justice for victims while protecting the rights of the defendant.”

“Third, when a prosecutor seeks to resolve a case through diversion or some other alternative to prosecution, it should be done so with an acknowledgment of culpability on the part of the defendant. A case with the consequential effects of Mr. Smollett’s should not be resolved without a finding of guilt or innocence.”

“Fourth, expunging Mr. Smollett’s record at this immediate stage is counter to transparency. Law enforcement will now not be able to acknowledge that Mr. Smollett was indicted and charged with these horrible crimes and the full record of what occurred will be forever hidden from public view. Finally, we believe strongly that hate crimes should be prosecuted vigorously but the burden of proof should not be artificially increased due to the misguided decisions of others.”

HERE’S WHAT YOU’RE MISSING …

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Vivek Saxena

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