Jussie Smollett

[6andcounting]

(03-28-2019, 06:14 PM)Vas Deferens Wrote: These other crooks clearly didnt get the message about riding that trickle down wave bootstraps flapping in the wind.  Idiots.

Thanks for contributing.

[fredtoast]

This whole story just stinks like shit. I wish there were no MAGA hats involved because I don't want to even appear to be on the FOXNEWS side of this argument, but it is ridiculous that Smollette is getting this deal. And I don't care if other people have gotten the same deal that he has. This is a high profile case and they need to make an example of him. This bullshit dog and pony show he orchestrated is going to hurt victims of REAL hate crimes from this day forward.

[6andcounting]

Wow. Foxx’s office now admitting she didn’t *actually* recuse herself from the Smollett case, legally speaking. They just used that word “colloquially,” for public consumption. pic.twitter.com/b63Mhct2ln

— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) March 28, 2019

[6andcounting]

(03-28-2019, 06:43 PM)fredtoast Wrote: This whole story just stinks like shit.  I wish there were no MAGA hats involved because I don't want to even appear to be on the FOXNEWS side of this argument, but it is ridiculous that Smollette is getting this deal.  And I don't care if other people have gotten the same deal that he has.  This is a high profile case and they need to make an example of him.  This bullshit dog and pony show he orchestrated is going to hurt victims of REAL hate crimes from this day forward.

You're also on the same team as Trump and Rob Emmanuel. 

Just pretend like you're starring in a movie where Trump, Emmanuel, Charles Barkley and you team up to fight fake terrorism.

[6andcounting]

Rob Emmanuel plans on having Smollett pay the city a check for the cost of the investigation.

"My recommendation is when he writes the check, in the memo section he can put the word, I'm 'accountable' for the hoax." @ChicagosMayor Rahm Emanuel says Jussie Smollett  "doesn't feel any sense of contrition and remorse" after charges against him dropped. pic.twitter.com/Bv1ttslmUO

— CBS Chicago (@cbschicago) March 28, 2019

Later Smollett's attorneys responded with this statement:

More from Jussie Smollet team.

STATEMENT FROM JUSSIE SMOLLETT'S DEFENSE TEAM REGARDING MAYOR EMMANUEL'S  STATEMENT

“It is the Mayor and the Police Chief who owe Jussie - owe him an apology - for dragging an innocent man’s character through the mud. Jussie has paid enough.”

— Charlie De Mar (@CharlieDeMar) March 28, 2019

[Nebuchadnezzar]

What if he was attacked by MAGA hat wearing, white clansmen and these two brothers said it was them and that he put them up to it because he made fun of them?

[*michaelsean*]

(03-28-2019, 06:14 PM)Vas Deferens Wrote: These other crooks clearly didnt get the message about riding that trickle down wave bootstraps flapping in the wind.  Idiots.

You do have s gift for fitting that into virtually any thread.

[*bfine32*]

(03-28-2019, 10:29 PM)michaelsean Wrote: You do have s gift for fitting that into virtually any thread.

But those type comments are helpful 

[Matt_Crimson]

(03-28-2019, 06:43 PM)fredtoast Wrote: This whole story just stinks like shit.  I wish there were no MAGA hats involved because I don't want to even appear to be on the FOXNEWS side of this argument, but it is ridiculous that Smollette is getting this deal.  And I don't care if other people have gotten the same deal that he has.  This is a high profile case and they need to make an example of him.  This bullshit dog and pony show he orchestrated is going to hurt victims of REAL hate crimes from this day forward.

I agree.

If you're someone in the spotlight like Jussie Smollett is, you should be held to higher standards of the law than the general public is in my opinion. What Jussie Smollett did isn't something that should be brushed off as "no big deal". This type of stuff creates even more division among the public especially when you take into account the higher profile status of Smollett which will gain more attention than someone like you are me lying about something like this. People were posting about it all over twitter with even those running for office getting involved in the lie. Yet all Smollett gets is a slap on the wrist. It's ridiculous. Make an example of this clown.

[*michaelsean*]

When you've got Obama's former right hand man and a black police chief fuming over this, I'm going to take my cue from that as I imagine everyone else is.

I doubt he even did this to bring attention to anything other than himself.

[Vas Deferens]

(03-28-2019, 10:29 PM)michaelsean Wrote: You do have s gift for fitting that into virtually any thread.

I apparently didnt get the memo that the republican base has taken a stance against inequality in the justice system.  I've been under the impression all these years that the all mighty dollar is the ultimate arbiter.  Conservative's realization, that the bootstraps analogy is literally a reference to an act which one cannot physically accomplish, is refreshing.  

I'm more pissed than most when people of significant means receive favorable judgement's as result of their wealth.  Always have been, no matter the case.  But that's because I've always held that moral conviction.  Honestly haven't cared all too much about this case because I don't generally give 2 shits about celebrities.  

I just hope republicans remember this when inequality in the justice system is brought up in other contexts.  History would inform me otherwise. 
 

[SunsetBengal]

This case isn't over. The Illinois Prosecutor's Bar Association wrote a scathing letter pointing out several things inconsistent with Illinois prosecutorial practice.

http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/local/ipba-blasts-kim-foxx-for-handling-of-smollett-case-she-misled-the-public-

Quote:"The Illinois Prosecutors Bar Association serves as the voice for nearly 1,000 front line prosecutors across the State who work tirelessly towards the pursuit of justice. The events of the past few days regarding the Cook County State’s Attorney’s handling of the Jussie Smollett case is not condoned by the IPBA, nor is it representative of the honest ethical work prosecutors provide to the citizens of the State of Illinois on a daily basis.

The manner in which this case was dismissed was abnormal and unfamiliar to those who practice law in criminal courthouses across the State. Prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges alike do not recognize the arrangement Mr. Smollett received. Even more problematic, the State’s Attorney and her representatives have fundamentally misled the public on the law and circumstances surrounding the dismissal.
The public has the right to know the truth, and we set out to do that here.
When an elected State’s Attorney recuses herself from a prosecution, Illinois law provides that the court shall appoint a special prosecutor. See 55 ILCS 5/3-9008(a-15). Typically, the special prosecutor is a neighboring State’s Attorney, the Attorney General, or the State Appellate Prosecutor.
Here, the State’s Attorney kept the case within her office and thus never actually recused herself as a matter of law.
Additionally, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office falsely informed the public that the uncontested sealing of the criminal court case was “mandatory” under Illinois law. This statement is not accurate. To the extent the case was even eligible for an immediate seal, that action was discretionary, not mandatory, and only upon the proper filing of a petition to seal. See 20 ILCS 2630/5.2(g)(2). For seals not subject to Section 5.2(g)(2), the process employed in this case by the State’s Attorney effectively denied law enforcement agencies of legally required Notice (See 20 ILCS 2630/5.2(d)(4)) and the legal opportunity to object to the sealing of the file (See 20 ILCS 2630/5.2(d)(5)). The State’s Attorney not only declined to fight the sealing of this case in court, but then provided false information to the public regarding it.
The appearance of impropriety here is compounded by the fact that this case was not on the regularly scheduled court call, the public had no reasonable notice or opportunity to view these proceedings, and the dismissal was done abruptly at what has been called an “emergency” hearing. To date, the nature of the purported emergency has not been publicly disclosed. The sealing of a court case immediately following a hearing where there was no reasonable notice or opportunity for the public to attend is a matter of grave public concern and undermines the very foundation of our public court system.
Lastly, the State’s Attorney has claimed this arrangement is “available to all defendants” and “not a new or unusual practice.” There has even been an implication it was done in accordance with a statutory diversion program. These statements are plainly misleading and inaccurate. This action was highly unusual, not a statutory diversion program, and not in accordance with well accepted practices of State’s Attorney initiated diversionary programs. The IPBA supports diversion programs, and recognizes the many benefits they provide to the community, the defendant and to the prosecuting agency. Central to any diversion program, however, is that the defendant must accept responsibility. To be clear here, this simply was not a deferred prosecution.
Prosecutors must be held to the highest standard of legal ethics in the pursuit of justice. The actions of the Cook County State’s Attorney have fallen woefully short of this expectation. Through the repeated misleading and deceptive statements to the public on Illinois law and circumstances surrounding the Smollett dismissal, the State’s Attorney has failed in her most fundamental ethical obligations to the public. The IPBA condemns these actions.
This irregular arrangement was an affront to prosecutors across the State, the Chicago Police Department, victims of hate crimes, and the people of the City of Chicago and Cook County. We strongly encourage our members and the public to review the National District Attorneys Associations statement on prosecutorial best practices in high profile cases."

[*michaelsean*]

(03-29-2019, 07:04 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: This case isn't over. The Illinois Prosecutor's Bar Association wrote a scathing letter pointing out several things inconsistent with Illinois prosecutorial practice.

http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/local/ipba-blasts-kim-foxx-for-handling-of-smollett-case-she-misled-the-public-

This may swing too far the other way. The guy got away with something and is acting like an ass about it. It happens. Call him a duck and move on