Special Prosecutor Dan Webb ripped Jussie Smollett for lying to the jury during a press conference Thursday.
“I told the jury that I thought the evidence was overwhelming that in fact Mr. Smollett faked a hate crime and then lied to the police about it,” Webb said during the press conference. Smollett “then compounded his crimes by lying during the jury during the course of this trial and insulting their intelligence,” Webb went on to say.
WATCH:
Special Prosecutor Dan Webb: Jury Agreed With ‘Overwhelming’ Evidence That Jussie Smollett Lied https://t.co/OKBSHNgp2g pic.twitter.com/4zAZCBVbIB
— CBS Chicago (@cbschicago) December 10, 2021
Smollett was found guilty Thursday of five charges related to making a false police report claiming to be the victim of a hate crime.
“This jury worked so hard. For Mr. Smollett to get up in front of them and lie to them for hours and hours and hours, that really compounded his misconduct,” Webb went on to say. (RELATED: FLASHBACK: Dave Chappelle Roasts Jussie Smollett For Faking A Hate Crime)
“Mr. Smollett would not have lost this case, as he did today, unless the jury found that he lied to them,” Webb said during the press conference.
Before Smollett’s story fell apart, many prominent Democrats characterized the planned assault as a “lynching.” Some of these tweets, including a tweet from Vice President Kamala Harris calling the incident a “modern day lynching,” are still on Twitter.
Webb was appointed special prosecutor by Judge Michael Toomin in August 2019 to investigate why State Attorney Kim Foxx decided to drop the charges against Smollett.