McHenry Times

Illinois state Rep. Allen Skillicorn (R-East Dundee) held a press conference this week, speaking out against the recently dropped charges in the case of TV actor Jussie Smollett while calling for a federal investigation.

On January 29, Smollett claimed that he was the victim of a racially charged and anti-gay motivated attack, drawing national attention to Chicago law enforcement. Over the past two months, Illinois officials investigated what was originally reported as a heinous hate crime.

But as Smollett’s story unraveled, charges were eventually filed against the "Empire" actor for orchestrating the entire incident. Then, earlier this week, all charges were suddenly dismissed.

State Rep. Allen Skillicorn (R-East Dundee)

“Sixteen fake hate crimes,” Skillicorn said at the news conference. “It’s the biggest middle finger against the law-abiding people of Illinois that I have ever seen."

Rep. Skillicorn believes that politics heavily influenced the prosecution’s decision to drop all charges against the actor. 

“If Jussie Smollet would have been a Trump supporter, we would have seen a different level of prosecution," Skillicorn said. "This is political pandering from State’s Attorney Kim Foxx.”

Skillicorn is seeking justice for those wronged by the whole affair: the law-abiding citizens of Chicago and throughout the state.

“[Smollett] pulled cops off the beat, making ordinary Chicago citizens unsafe,” Skillicorn said. “Mr. Smollett lied about the people of Illinois; Mr. Smollett lied to police; Mr. Smollett lied about the character and the people of the City of Chicago. That is wrong, that deserves prosecution.”

But also, Skillicorn is adamant about seeking transparency from Foxx and her office.

“I’m calling on Kim Foxx to overturn those emails," Skillicorn said. "We want to see the paper trail of what went on, what your thoughts were, and why this happened. And I would also love to see a federal investigation of this.”

Skillicorn is not alone in his push for a federal investigation or in his call for action against the state's attorney. The Chicago Tribune published an op-ed Friday calling for Foxx’s removal.