Jussie Smollett Paying $50K to Charity in Settlement With City of Chicago

Jussie Smollett has reached a settlement with Chicago by donating $50,000 to charity instead of paying a larger sum for the investigation into his alleged hate crime hoax. The agreement calls for the actor to support the Building Better Futures Center for the Arts in Chicago, an organization that focuses on providing mental health, art, music, and acting training to underprivileged youth in the city. The civil lawsuit filed by the city seeking restitution for the expenses related to the 2019 incident has been ongoing for six years, and both parties have now decided to resolve it with this settlement. While Jussie has already made the donation, a judge still needs to approve the agreement. Despite being convicted of five felonies in 2021, the conviction was overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court last year due to a plea deal Jussie had made with the Cook County State’s Attorney. As a result, Jussie is not facing any criminal charges and can claim a tax write-off for his charitable contribution, while the city will have to absorb the $120,000 in investigative costs.