A timeline of how the Jussie Smollett case unfolded

The saga of Jussie Smollett’s alleged January attack in Chicago took a surreal series of twists and turns leading up to the March 26 announcement that all charges against the “Empire” actor had been dropped. Later that day, the entertainer’s lawyers released a statement saying that although Smollett felt “victimized” by suspicions of the attack being a hoax, the actor would still cooperate with police. Jussie has been an important member of our ‘Empire’ family for the past five years and we care about him deeply.” Feb. 28 | Brothers regret involvement in incident In a statement issued by Gloria Schmidt, the attorney for the Osundairo brothers, she says the two men deeply regret their involvement in the incident and that they “understand how it has impacted people across the nation, particularly minority communities and especially those who have been victims of hate crimes themselves.” March 7 | Smollett is charged with 16 felonies A Chicago grand jury indicts the “Empire” actor on 16 felony counts for allegedly making false reports to police about his attack. April 4 | Deadline to pay bill passes; civil action threatened Chicago’s Law Department, declaring that Smollett had “refused to reimburse” the city for the police overtime, says it will draft a civil complaint and file suit against the actor to “pursue the full measure of damages.” Geragos, Smollett’s attorney, responds with his own letter, saying Smollett “will not be intimidated” into paying the bill and characterizing the repayment demand as “a course of conduct intended to harass and irreparably injure Mr. Smollett.” Geragos also says that if the city takes civil action, he would demand access to the entire investigation file, including information that hadn’t been previously disclosed to his team, along with depositions from the Chicago mayor, the police superintendent, the two brothers whom Smollett had allegedly enlisted to help with his scheme and their attorneys.