Jussie Smollett Is Suing Chicago for 'Malicious Prosecution'

The Jussie Smollett saga doesn’t look like it’s over just yet.

In case the constant barrage of news has caused you to already forget, the former Empire actor claimed he was the victim of a hate crime back in January. Later, it was determined that he knew the two men who had allegedly committed the crime, the Osundairo brothers, and the Chicago police accused Smollett of engaging them to fake the attack.

Smollett maintained that the crime really happened and he had nothing to do with orchestrating or faking it, and the charges against him for filing a false police report were ultimately dropped after he paid an agreed upon $10,000 to the city.

But it wasn’t long before the city of Chicago filed a civil lawsuit against the actor, seeking $130,000 in damages for the time they spent investigating what they say was a fake crime.

Now, the actor has filed a counterclaim.

“Having agreed to accept $10,000 from Mr. Smollett as payment in full connection with the dismissal of the charges against him, the City cannot seek additional recovery from Mr. Smollett under the doctrine of accord and satisfaction,” the counterclaim reads.

In it, Smollett and his representation also claim that the city of Chicago engaged in “malicious prosecution,” and that accusing him of orchestrating his own attack has damaged his career.

“It is clear that the Osundairo brothers faced prosecution by the CPD for the attack, and they decided to advance the false hoax narrative to avoid criminal charges,” the lawsuit says. It also details a number of things that happened during the investigation that call into question the Osundairo brothers’ account of events, namely, that Smollett was behind the attack.

The actor, who was fired from Empire after the charges against him were dropped, is seeking some sort of compensation for the harm the accusations have caused his career, and has asked that the lawsuit be settled through trial by jury.