CHICAGO _ The special prosecutor appointed to look into the politically charged case against former "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett will remain in that post despite his admission that he had co-hosted a 2016 fundraiser for now-Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx at his high-powered law firm and also cut a $1,000 check to her campaign.
In defending his appointment of Dan K. Webb, Cook County Judge Michael Toomin said the donation would not affect the ability of the co-chairman of the Winston & Strawn law firm to be fair and impartial.
An attorney for Foxx had raised concerns that the donation to her campaign gave an appearance of impropriety.
Last week Webb acknowledged in a filing in Cook County criminal court that he had overlooked attending the fundraiser or making a donation, saying he had "no recollection" of doing either. Webb said he had likely made the donation at the behest of a colleague at the firm who put on the event.
Webb said the matter had been brought to his attention by Michael Bromwich, an attorney for Foxx.
"I should point out that it is common for Winston partners to host fundraisers for political candidates at our firm," Webb wrote to Toomin, who appointed Webb as special prosecutor in the hot-button case in August. "It is also common that my Winston partners request that I contribute to these fundraisers."
State election records show that in the last 25 years Webb has donated nearly $375,000 to political candidates and entities, including both Democrats and Republicans. In 2015 and 2016, Webb made two donations totaling $3,000 to then-State's Attorney Anita Alvarez, who lost to Foxx in the 2016 Democratic primary, the records show. Webb cut the check to Foxx two weeks before she easily won the general election over lukewarm Republican opposition.
Still, the revelation that Webb donated money to Foxx's campaign could potentially throw a wrench in Webb's ongoing inquiry into how Foxx's office handled an investigation of Smollett that has been rife with allegations of political influence over the judicial process.
Webb is expected to discuss the political donations with Toomin at a hearing Friday at the Leighton Criminal Court Building. In an emailed statement Monday evening, Foxx said she was notified of the donation by her campaign staff last Tuesday.
"Mr. Webb was notified that same day, and my office continues to cooperate fully with the investigation," she said. A spokeswoman declined to say if Foxx remembered either the fundraiser or the Webb donation.
Webb's filing included a copy of the flyer for the fundraiser on Oct. 13, 2016. At the top of the invitation, it read, "Please join hosts Kimball Anderson, Oscar David, and Dan Webb in support of Kim Foxx, Democratic nominee for Cook County State's Attorney."
Anderson and David are both partners in the firm. Also included with the filing was a copy of Webb's $1,000 check that he wrote from his personal bank account and dated the day before the event.
Webb, a moderate Republican, said Anderson was a political supporter of Foxx's who organized the fundraiser at Foxx's request. Anderson said he "does not recall" Webb attending the event, according to the filing.
"Mr. Anderson stated that the fundraiser was sparsely attended, and that Ms. Foxx and her staff showed up very late," Webb wrote. "Ms. Foxx then made a few comments to the remaining attendees, and apologized for her lateness and left."
Webb's appointment as special prosecutor six weeks ago added even more star power to a case that has made nearly constant headlines since Smollett first reported to police that he was the victim of a homophobic and racist attack on a frigid January night in downtown Chicago.
Initially, Smollett drew support from celebrities and politicians across the country when he reported the attack, but that soon turned to condemnation when he was charged with filing a false police report.
The controversy intensified when those charges were dropped by Foxx's office in February with little explanation. At the time, Foxx had recused herself from the case _ purportedly after having contact with a member of Smollett's family early in the investigation at the request of Tina Tchen, Michelle Obama's former chief of staff.
In June, Toomin determined that the entire Smollett case might be legally invalid from start to finish since Foxx inappropriately named her top deputy to take over after stepping aside. A former U.S. attorney for the Chicago area, Webb is widely considered one of the city's most distinguished trial lawyers in private practice, having handled a long list of high-profile clients and acted as special prosecutor or in a similar investigative capacity on five other occasions.
In selecting Webb as special prosecutor, Toomin called him "a man guided by a strong moral compass and integrity."
