Smollett attorneys file motion to reconsider appointment of special prosecutor
CHICAGO (FOX 32 NEWS) - Attorneys for Jussie Smollett filed a motion Friday asking the court to reconsider the appointment of a special prosecutor to examine the case's handling.
The Empire actor's attorneys, Tina Glandian and Mark Geragos, described the case against Smollett as a "travesty of justice," arguing that the media and courts have ignored his presumption of innocence.
In June, Cook County Judge Michael Toomin decided to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the decision by Cook County prosecutors to dismiss all charges against actor Jussie Smollett.
Toomin suggested that the county's state's attorney, Kim Foxx, mishandled the Smollett case by appointing a top aide to oversee it after she recused herself.
The 32-page motion asks for the court to vacate the June 21st decision and deny the petition for the appointment of a special prosecutor.
Most of the document is devoted to debunking evidence established in court, including an attack on the Osundairo brothers, who said they were a part of staging a fake hate crime.
The motion reads: "But other than the Osundairo brothers' self-serving statements which resulted in their release from custody with no criminal charges being filed against them, not a single piece of evidence independently corroborates their claim that the attack was a hoax. Moreover, the actual evidence demonstrates that the Osundairo brothers lied to police and were acting with at least one other person who was not Mr. Smollett."
Smollett's attorneys also filed two other motions Friday. One calls for another judge to substitute in the place of Toomin. The other motion requests the release of the transcripts of Abimbola Osundairo and Olabinjo Osundairo during their grand jury testimony.