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Smollett Case Was Inadvertently Sealed, State Attorney Says

(Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images)

Katie Jerkovich Entertainment Reporter
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Cook County State Attorney Kim Foxx defended her office’s decision to drop all charges against Jussie Smollett after allegedly staging a hate-crime and said the case was inadvertently sealed.

According to TMZ Wednesday:

Foxx is on a media blitz and she just told ABC7 in Chicago her office did NOT ask for the resolution in Smollett’s case to be made under seal. 

It starts at the 2:37 minute mark. (RELATED: Police Chief ‘Furious’ At Smollett Case Dismissal)

WATCH:

“It was not our decision to have the resolution made under seal,” Foxx explained. “Because of the resolution, Mr. Smollett was allowed to have his criminal record to the police report around the arrest sealed.”

“The court file was not supposed to be sealed,” she added. “I think what happened, the clerk sealed the whole thing. We did not advocate, do not believe that the court file should be sealed.”

Foxx continued, “We believe in transparency even on difficult situations, we’ll answer the questions. We did not ask for that file to be sealed. I believe [unsealing the resolution] is in the process now. You will have the court file to look at the court file.”

During another interview, Foxx also said if the public is upset about the outcome of the “Empire” star’s case it’s because they don’t understand the law.

WATCH:

“If people don’t know how the justice system works, and more specifically, alternative prosecution diversion, pre-trial diversion, this would seem like an odd outcome” Foxx said, per CBS2 Chicago.” But it doesn’t surprise me that people and their sense of justice would think that a different outcome would make sense.” (RELATED: Charges Against Jussie Smollett Dropped)

“This case was treated like the other cases that have gone through our alternative prosecution model,” she added. “He was given the same opportunity that thousands of others with the same level of offense, and the same criminal background, have had. The same opportunity.”

Foxx continued, “I believe that the outcome, him having to forfeit the $10,000, having to do community service, based on the allegations, and again the class 4 felony and no background, are an outcome that we could expect with this type of case.”

On Tuesday, prosecutors announced that they had dropped all charges against Smollett. Shortly after, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel called the decision a “whitewash of justice.” While Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said he didn’t believe justice was served.