Former U.S Attorney and now prominent defense attorney Dan Webb selected by Judge Toomin as special prosecutor in Jussie Smollett case.— Charlie De Mar (@CharlieDeMar) August 23, 2019
Webb was previously appointed special prosecutor by Judge Toomin in death of David Koschman. @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/92y6ECo093
Here's what the State's Attorney's office said:
And here's how the local NBC station is covering it:
Cook County Judge Michael Toomin named former federal prosecutor Dan Webb as the special prosecutor in a hearing Friday after his surprise ruling in June that one was warranted.
Webb is the former U.S. attorney who led the "Operation Greylord" investigations into judicial corruption in Cook County, and is currently the co-executive chairman of Winston & Strawn LLP, according to his bio on the law firm's website.
Webb said at a news conference after the hearing that he believed Toomin had assigned him to complete three main tasks.
"First, to investigate if any persons or offices involved in the Smollett case engaged in any wrongdoing," Webb said.
"Number two, determine if reasonable grounds do exist to further prosecute Mr. Smollett," he continued. "And number three, to submit a written report to the court of our findings and conclusions at the end of the special prosecutor's investigation."
Webb said one of the first things he believed he and his team would do in the investigation would be to file a motion before Toomin requesting the appointment of a special grand jury.
He also said he didn't want to "reinvent the wheel," and would thus quickly reach out to the four government agencies who have investigated the situation: the Cook County state's attorney's office, the Chicago Police Department, the inspector general of Cook County and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Webb added that he would also reach out to Smollett's legal team early on, as well as set up interviews with key witnesses in the case.
Webb noted that he and Winston and Strawn would complete the investigation pro bono, without charging the county (and subsequently, taxpayers) any legal fees beyond out-of-pocket expenses.
This marks Webb's sixth appointment as a special prosecutor since he left the U.S. attorney's office in 1985, he said. He was the special prosecutor appointed in the 2004 death of David Koschman, who died after former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley's nephew Richard Vanecko punched him and he hit his head on the pavement.
"I don't know where this case is going," Webb said in discussing a potential timeline for the investigation. "I'm going to take it one step at a time. I gotta master the facts. I gotta learn the legal issues and I gotta be fair to everybody. But I can tell you right now our strategy and our plan is to expedite it and move forward very quickly."
The office of Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx charged Smollett in February with 16 counts of disorderly conduct for purportedly orchestrating the incident the previous month. A month later, prosecutors dropped all charges with little explanation.
"While the court previously concluded that our office had no conflict of interest in this case, public trust is paramount to our work," the Cook County state's attorney's office said in a statement following Webb's appointment. "We pledge our full cooperation to the special prosecutor appointed today to review this matter. "
"We are proud of the dedicated women and men of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office who work hard every day on behalf of victims and communities affected by crime," the statement continued. "As we continue our focus on efforts to increase public safety and reduce violence, we remain committed to justice, transparency, and fairness for those we serve."
Among the options available to Webb would be to restore charges against Smollett, who continues to maintain the January incident wasn't staged.
A former state appellate judge, Sheila O'Brien, petitioned for a special prosecutor, leading to Toomin's ruling.
It can't be easy being Jussie Smollett right now. The appointment of a special prosecutor puts his story back in the national news, with coverage from the New York Times: Dan K. Webb Is Named Special Prosecutor in Jussie Smollett Case to USA Today: Special prosecutor named to look into dropped charges against Jussie Smollett to Page Six: Special prosecutor who will re-investigate Jussie Smollett announced.
The fact that a special prosecutor has been appointed reminds everyone that Jussie sure looks guilty of staging a hoax, which is why dropping the charges against him was so controversial in the first place. He doesn't appear to be in any immediate legal danger, and obviously I say that as a non-lawyer, but even the possibility of "further prosecution" has to make him nervous.
Jussie Smollett's life and career are screwed up so far beyond what he could have possibly imagined when he decided to stage his little hoax that I almost find myself feeling sorry for him, but only almost. He set this thing in motion, for the most craven of reasons and apparently without even the slightest consideration of the impact it might have on the community around him. He doesn't appear to have even considered the possibility that his plan was less than foolproof. (My first post about all this was titled "What Jussie didn't know;" read it here.) He continues to profess his innocence in spite of the tsunami of evidence against him, and he has thrown the Osundairo brothers under the bus, claiming that they attacked him of their own volition out of hatred for him as a gay man. So, no, not much sympathy for Jussie Smollett.
Finally, at least for now, regardless of how this ultimately ends for Jussie, his hoax will live on in infamy at UrbanDictionary.com, where "Smolletting" is now a verb. It's defined as "Giving of an elaborate, contrived story delivered with complete conviction for the purpose of personal gain." Read more here.
As I've said before, this has been another bad day for Jussie Smollett.
Update on Saturday morning. The local view of things, from the Chicago Tribune, in an article posted this morning:
[Former U.S. Attorney Dan] Webb’s appointment adds more star power to a case that already has made national headlines for months and touches on issues of race, politics and celebrity, even though it stems from a low-level felony charge of disorderly conduct.
... The allegations at the center of Smollett’s case are comparatively minor. Smollett was accused of orchestrating a fake hate crime attack on himself; the charges were later dropped by State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office with little explanation and to great public outcry.
In signing the order for a special prosecutor in June, [Judge] Toomin said Foxx overstepped her authority when she put her top deputy in charge of Smollett’s prosecution after she recused herself.
Foxx had spoken with a relative of Smollett’s in the early phases of the investigation after she was contacted by Tina Tchen, formerly Michelle Obama’s chief of staff — sparking speculation that the case’s ultimate outcome was tainted by political clout.
Webb’s appointment will open the whole matter anew, and his mandate is far-reaching. He has the power to investigate not only Smollett but any other people or agencies who touched the hot-button case since it exploded in January.
Webb’s team could reprosecute Smollett. Since he never entered a guilty plea or went on trial, new charges would not violate his right against double jeopardy, experts have said.
And Webb has the power to investigate Foxx’s handling of the case, which could put a cloud over her run for reelection in the March Democratic primary.
... Webb on Friday immediately said he’d likely impanel a special grand jury in the Smollett case, which could hear sworn testimony from witnesses and deliver criminal indictments. (Read the article here.)
The fact that a special prosecutor has been appointed reminds everyone that Jussie sure looks guilty of staging a hoax, which is why dropping the charges against him was so controversial in the first place. He doesn't appear to be in any immediate legal danger, and obviously I say that as a non-lawyer, but even the possibility of "further prosecution" has to make him nervous.
Jussie Smollett's life and career are screwed up so far beyond what he could have possibly imagined when he decided to stage his little hoax that I almost find myself feeling sorry for him, but only almost. He set this thing in motion, for the most craven of reasons and apparently without even the slightest consideration of the impact it might have on the community around him. He doesn't appear to have even considered the possibility that his plan was less than foolproof. (My first post about all this was titled "What Jussie didn't know;" read it here.) He continues to profess his innocence in spite of the tsunami of evidence against him, and he has thrown the Osundairo brothers under the bus, claiming that they attacked him of their own volition out of hatred for him as a gay man. So, no, not much sympathy for Jussie Smollett.
Finally, at least for now, regardless of how this ultimately ends for Jussie, his hoax will live on in infamy at UrbanDictionary.com, where "Smolletting" is now a verb. It's defined as "Giving of an elaborate, contrived story delivered with complete conviction for the purpose of personal gain." Read more here.
As I've said before, this has been another bad day for Jussie Smollett.
Update on Saturday morning. The local view of things, from the Chicago Tribune, in an article posted this morning:
[Former U.S. Attorney Dan] Webb’s appointment adds more star power to a case that already has made national headlines for months and touches on issues of race, politics and celebrity, even though it stems from a low-level felony charge of disorderly conduct.
... The allegations at the center of Smollett’s case are comparatively minor. Smollett was accused of orchestrating a fake hate crime attack on himself; the charges were later dropped by State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office with little explanation and to great public outcry.
In signing the order for a special prosecutor in June, [Judge] Toomin said Foxx overstepped her authority when she put her top deputy in charge of Smollett’s prosecution after she recused herself.
Foxx had spoken with a relative of Smollett’s in the early phases of the investigation after she was contacted by Tina Tchen, formerly Michelle Obama’s chief of staff — sparking speculation that the case’s ultimate outcome was tainted by political clout.
Webb’s appointment will open the whole matter anew, and his mandate is far-reaching. He has the power to investigate not only Smollett but any other people or agencies who touched the hot-button case since it exploded in January.
Webb’s team could reprosecute Smollett. Since he never entered a guilty plea or went on trial, new charges would not violate his right against double jeopardy, experts have said.
And Webb has the power to investigate Foxx’s handling of the case, which could put a cloud over her run for reelection in the March Democratic primary.
... Webb on Friday immediately said he’d likely impanel a special grand jury in the Smollett case, which could hear sworn testimony from witnesses and deliver criminal indictments. (Read the article here.)
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