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The family of a Chicago Police officer fatally shot by her partner during a pursuit earlier this year has filed a wrongful death lawsuit, alleging the department ignored clear warning signs that the officer posed a threat to her.
The lawsuit, filed by the mother of Officer Krystal Rivera, claims the Chicago Police Department knew Officer Carlos Baker had a history of reckless behavior and violent misconduct but continued assigning him to work alongside Rivera. Rivera, 36, was shot and killed on June 5 while the pair were trying to apprehend an armed suspect.
According to the complaint, Rivera had repeatedly expressed concerns to supervisors about Baker’s behavior and ended a two-year on-again, off-again romantic relationship with him shortly before the shooting. The lawsuit states the department was aware of multiple complaints against Baker, including an allegation from a former girlfriend who accused him of threatening her with a gun inside a bar.
Rivera’s mother, Yolanda, said her daughter never should have feared the person assigned to watch her back. “Krystal understood the dangers of this job. She accepted the risk that came with policing. What she never should have had to fear was her own partner,” she said. “That betrayal cost Krystal’s life.”
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Krystal Rivera, 36, was shot by fellow officer Carlos Baker on June 5 while the pair attempted to apprehend an armed suspect. (AP)
The lawsuit alleges Rivera and Baker pulled over a motorist suspected of having a weapon, prompting a foot chase that ended outside an apartment building. Baker kicked in the door and fired his weapon at the suspect but struck Rivera in the back instead.
Family attorney Antonio Romanucci said Baker then fled to another floor rather than call for help or provide any first aid.
“He did not attempt even the most basic first aid step of applying pressure on her wound… Baker left Krystal there on the floor, literally gasping. Krystal radioed in her own shooting,” Romanucci said.
The lawsuit also accuses the department of filing misleading reports to state regulators that suggested the shots came from a barricaded suspect rather than from Baker.
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Romanucci said Baker had 11 misconduct complaints in three years, placing him among the small percentage of officers with the worst disciplinary records. In one 2022 incident, Baker allegedly brandished a gun at an ex-girlfriend inside a tavern — a case reviewed by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, which has not issued a formal determination.
Krystal Rivera had told supervisors she was concerned about her safety with Carlos Baker as her partner and had ended a two-year on-again, off-again romantic relationship with him shortly before the shooting. (Chicago Police Department)
Rivera joined CPD in 2021 and was paired with Baker in early 2023. The two began a romantic relationship that summer, but Rivera later asked for a new partner over what the lawsuit describes as Baker’s “prior reckless conduct.” Though the request was granted, the two were reassigned together last year after Rivera transferred into a tactical team.
According to the complaint, Rivera ended the relationship for good last winter after discovering Baker had a live-in girlfriend. She told colleagues she feared Baker’s “negative and hostile reaction” and said he continued showing up uninvited at her home as late as June 4 — one day before the shooting.
The lawsuit claims the police department knew that Carlos Baker was reckless and posed a threat. (Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Romanucci argued Baker should never have remained in uniform. “He never should have gotten past his probationary period. He was not fit to police our communities, let alone carry a gun under the color of law,” he said. “The decision CPD made to keep Carlos Baker on the force was not costly. It was fatal.”
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The Cook County State’s Attorney previously declined to prosecute Baker, but Rivera’s family hopes new information uncovered during the lawsuit will lead prosecutors to reconsider.
Rivera, described by colleagues as a dedicated mentor and rising officer, was in her fourth year with the department.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.