Jussie Smollett donates $50,000 to charity in Chicago settlement, maintains his innocence
In a lengthy statement to Fox News Digital, Smollett said, "Over six years ago, after it was reported I had been jumped, city officials in Chicago set out to convince the public that I willfully set an assault against myself. This false narrative has left a stain on my character that will not soon disappear. These officials wanted my money and wanted my confession for something I did not do.
"Today, it should be clear. … They have received neither. The decision to settle the civil lawsuit was not the most difficult one to make. After repeatedly refusing to pay the city, I was presented with an opportunity to make a charitable donation in exchange for the case being dismissed."
Smollett, who is Black and gay, originally reported to Chicago Police he was the victim of a racist and homophobic attack by two men wearing ski masks in January 2019. He was convicted in 2021 of staging the hate crime, but his conviction was overturned in November 2024.
In April 2019, the City of Chicago filed a lawsuit against Smollett in an attempt to recoup the costs of police investigating the alleged attack. The actor told Fox News Digital "despite what happened there politically," he still has a place in his heart for the city.
"Therefore, making a donation to benefit Chicago communities that are too often neglected by those in power will always be something I support," he said. "I've made a $50,000 donation to Building Brighter Futures (BBF) Center for the Arts, a local nonprofit doing incredible work nurturing self-expression, creativity and exploration of the arts for Chicago youth. This organization was of my choosing, and I'm comforted that there will be at least one winner from this experience."
Smollett said that even though the criminal charges were overturned, and the civil case has been dismissed, "I'm aware that it will not change everyone's mind about me or the attack I experienced. However, despite arduous and expensive attempts to punish me, I am innocent both in the eyes of God and of our criminal justice system."
Now, he said, he'll focus on moving forward.
"I will continue creating my art, fighting passionately for causes I hold dear and defending my integrity and family name with the truth," the former "Empire" star said.
In addition to the $50,000 he donated as part of his settlement, Smollett said he's also donating $10,000 to the Chicago Torture Justice Center, which "provides resources to communities healing from the violence of the Chicago Police Department."
"To anyone who has had to prove they have in fact been violated, you know how difficult this can be to navigate. I stand with and for you," Smollett said of the donation.
In a statement to the Chicago Sun-Times, city lawyers said, "The city believes this settlement provides a fair, constructive and conclusive resolution, allowing all the parties to close this six-year-old chapter and move forward."
Criminal charges against Smollett were originally dropped in March 2019, a month after his arrest. After special prosecutor Kim Foxx requested a new inquiry, the "Empire" star was convicted in December 2021 on five felony counts and later sentenced to 150 days in county jail. The Illinois Supreme Court decided in November 2024 that the special prosecutor's decision to retry Smollett on charges violated his rights.
"Today we resolve a question about the state's responsibility to honor the agreements it makes with defendants," Mark Geragos, Smollett's lawyer, told Fox News Digital at the time. "We hold that a second prosecution under these circumstances is a due process violation, and we therefore reverse defendant's conviction."
"This was not a prosecution based on facts, rather it was a vindictive persecution, and such a proceeding has no place in our criminal justice system," another of Smollett's attorneys, Nenye Uche, told Fox in a statement. "Ultimately, we are pleased that the rule of law was the big winner today. We are thankful to the Illinois Supreme Court for restoring order to Illinois' criminal law jurisprudence."
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