Hate crime hoaxer Jussie Smollett went on a bizarre Instagram rant in which he repeated his widely-debunked claim that he was the victim of a bias attack in the wake of his cushy settlement in his civil suit with the city of Chicago.
“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,” Smollett wrote on Instagram Saturday.
“These officials wanted my money and wanted my confession for something I did not do. Today, it should be clear…They have received neither.”
Smollett was convicted in 2021 for staging a phony hate crime against himself in Chicago in 2019, and was later sued by the Second City for $130,000 for the cost of the investigation into the bogus claims.
The “Mighty Ducks” actor and the Windy City have now settled their suit — with Smollett agreeing to donate $60,000 to two Chicago-based charitable organizations in lieu of paying the city.
The 42-year-old will donate $50,000 to nonprofit Building Brighter Futures Center for the Arts and “an additional” $10,000 to the Chicago Torture Justice Center, according to the Instagram post.
With this legal win on top of the shock overturning of his five felony charges by the Illinois Supreme Court— the “Empire” actor is now celebrating what he called his “innocence.”
“However, despite arduous and expensive attempts to punish me, I am innocent in the eyes of God and our criminal justice system,” Smollett wrote in the post.
“I will continue creating my art, fighting passionately for causes I hold dear and defending my integrity and family name with the truth,” he continued.
“To everyone who has supported me, thank you. Your prayers and belief in me mean more than words can properly express,” he wrote, concluding, “With Love & Respect, Jussie Smollett.”
Despite Smollett’s crowing over his legal success in the Illinois State Supreme Court, state officials claim that the overturning of the conviction did not mean the “Alien: Covenant” actor was telling the truth.
“Make no mistake: Today’s ruling has nothing to do with Mr. Smollett’s innocence,” special prosecutor Dan Webb said in a statement at the time.
“The Illinois Supreme Court did not find any error with the overwhelming evidence presented at trial… or the jury’s unanimous verdict that Mr. Smollett was guilty of five counts of felony disorderly conduct,” Webb stated.
The charges were overturned on Fifth Amendment rights violation, as Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx decided to drop the charges against Smollett after he was initially hit with 16 felony counts stemming from the bogus hate crime police report.
