Cook County State’s attorney Kim Foxx arrives to speak with reporters and details the charges against R. Kelly’s first court appearance at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse on February 23, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images)

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CHICAGO — Chicago’s top prosecutor has been subpoenaed to appear in court by a retired appellate judge who’s pushing for a special prosecutor to investigate the handling of the case against actor Jussie Smollett.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports that Sheila O’Brien also subpoenaed Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s top deputy and requested that Smollett appear at a hearing on her request.

Foxx was harshly criticized when her office announced it was dropping charges against Smollett that accused the black, gay actor of staging a racist and anti-gay attack on himself in downtown Chicago.

Foxx has defended the decision to drop the charges and says she welcomes an independent investigation.