Free Republic

As the Jussie Smollett case boiled over last year, Judge Michael Toomin appointed a special prosecutor to look at how Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and her office handled the controversial case, saying it had been botched. On Monday, the Cook County Democratic Party, which is chaired by Foxx ally Toni Preckwinkle, took the relatively rare step of voting not to endorse Toomin for retention on the Nov. 3 ballot. The move set off a political firestorm. Toomin called it “retaliation.” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said it sure looked like payback. But the Democratic leaders who dumped Toomin pointed to...

Judge Michael Toomin appointed a special prosecutor to look at how Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and her office handled the controversial Jussie Smollett case. On Monday, the Cook County Democratic Party, chaired by Foxx ally Toni Preckwinkle, took the rare step of voting not to endorse Toomin for retention. The move set off a political firestorm. Toomin called it “retaliation.” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said it looked like payback. Democratic leaders who dumped Toomin pointed to what they said was his outdated approach to juvenile justice as they declared it was time for him to retire. Adding intrigue to...

A Chicago judge appointed a special prosecutor on Friday morning to lead the investigation into the handling of the Jussie Smollett case. Cook County Judge Michael Toomin appointed former U.S. Attorney Dan Webb to the position to investigate the way the case was handled — specifically, why the 16 criminal charges against Smollett were dropped and to potentially reinstate the charges or even add additional charges against Smollett. "Webb gained prominence for his lead role during the Operation Greylord investigations into judicial corruption in Cook County," Fox 32 reported. "He served as special counsel in the Iran-Contra affair and was...

In a surprise move, a Cook County judge ordered the appointment of a special prosecutor Friday to investigate the controversial decision to drop all charges against Jussie Smollett. Judge Michael Toomin ruled that State’s Attorney Kim Foxx had the right to withdraw from the prosecution but could not legally appoint her top deputy to handle the case in her place. The special prosecutor could end up charging Smollett, Toomin said, and if the investigation uncovers suspicion of wrongdoing by others, additional charges could be brought. Toomin made the decision even though the county’s inspector general’s office is already investigating the...