Smollett’s lawyers say actor is victim twice over

CHICAGO — Calling Jussie Smollett’s prosecution a “travesty of justice,” the actor’s attorneys laid out arguments Friday for his innocence in the case that made him an object of widespread derision and sparked the greatest crisis of Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s career.

Smollett’s attorneys say he was, in fact, a victim twice over: First he suffered a real attack at the hands of two homophobic brothers and thenthebrothers framed Smollett by lying to police.

The brothers were also working with at least one other conspirator — an unidentified white man, the attorneys alleged for the first time in the filing. Smollett

Smollett’s attorneys laid out their defense in the greatest detail yet, all in an uphill effort to persuade Cook County Judge Michael Toomin to reverse his decision to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate why Foxx’s office in late March suddenly dropped all charges alleging Smollett made up the attack to promote his career.

“The media and the public failed to critically look at the evidence (and lack thereof) against Mr. Smollett, but now (Toomin) has accepted false media reports to presume Mr. Smollett guilty of charges which he pled not guilty to and which were dismissed against him,” the filing said.

The brothers’ attorney, Gloria Schmidt, said Friday that she hadn’t yet read the new filing, but expressed confidence that “the evidence will come out.”

In January, Smollett, then an actor on the “Empire” TV series, reported being the victim of an attack by two people who shouted racist and homophobic slurs and put a noose around his neck near his home. Smollett is black and gay.

Weeks later, Smollett was criminally charged for allegedly staging the attack with the help of Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo, two brothers whom police said he agreed to pay $3,500.