Jussie Smollett, the Empire actor accused of orchestrating a hate crime hoax, has agreed to pay $50,000 to a Chicago charity as part of a settlement over a lawsuit about the cost of the investigation into his claims.
The actor, who is Black and gay, claimed two men assaulted him, put a noose around his neck and spewed racial and homophobic slurs at him in Chicago in January 2019. Two years later, Smollett was convicted of lying to police related to allegations that he staged his own attack. While the Illinois Supreme Court overturned the decision, he has now agreed to pay $50,000 to a city charity to settle a lawsuit over the costs of the police investigation.
