The head of the Chicago Police Department on Friday offered an impassioned defense of his decision not to fire an officer for fraternizing with members of the far right Proud Boys and failing to tell police brass that he had come under FBI scrutiny.
At a City Council budget hearing, CPD Supt. David Brown stressed the department has “zero tolerance” for sworn officers “being members of” or “associating with” hate groups and, if he could prove that’s what happened, it would justify firing Officer Robert Bakker — though he didn’t mention Bakker by name.
Given what can be proved, however, Brown said a 120-day suspension was as far as he could legally go.
“I’ve been Black a long time. I would not tolerate an officer being a member of or being associated with a hate group,” Brown said.
“We were unable to prove by a preponderance of evidence — which is the legal standard of proof — that this officer was a member of or was associated with Proud Boys or any other hate group.”
What could be proved is that Bakker “failed to notify us that he had talked with federal authorities, and some other minor violations,” Brown said, adding that “120 days is a high level of discipline for what we were able to prove by a preponderance of evidence.”
Black Caucus Chair Jason Ervin (28th) acknowledged a 120-day suspension is no slap on the wrist, but nevertheless asked Brown if the case is closed.
Brown replied that “if we were to get the evidence, we could open that investigation back up and sustain those allegations by a preponderance and move toward [firing]. In my opinion, it’s supportive of separation and termination. It is. But we were not able to prove by a preponderance of evidence that he was a member of or associated with Proud Boys.”
Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th) asked what the “preponderance of evidence” standard requires.
“It’s a legal definition or proof that, more likely than not, it happened,” the superintendent said.
CPD’s general counsel Dana O’Malley added, “The superintendent is correct. It’s been defined as 50% plus one. The legal definition is more likely true than not.”
Internal Affairs Chief Yolanda Talley added the suspension “would not have been more than five days for what we were able to prove.”
“We brought him in for a second interview and he just felt so bad that he was accused of this, he mediated for 120 days. We didn’t offer him 120 days. He came in and spoke to us and said, ‘I’ll take 120 days,’” Talley said.
“The Proud Boys is not identified as an FBI hate group. If the Proud Boys were identified as an FBI hate group, this investigation would have looked totally different.”
Bakker’s suspension followed a lengthy internal investigation. He agreed not to contest the allegations against him, according to the Office of the Inspector General’s most recent quarterly report.
Bakker wasn’t named in the report, but the Sun-Times has previously reported on the probe and his association with the Proud Boys, an extremist group now at the center of the sprawling criminal inquiry into the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The investigation was sparked after Vice reported on Bakker’s ties in May 2020. The initial reporting centered on leaked chat logs showing Bakker communicating and organizing meetings with members of the Proud Boys, which has been designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Canadian government.
Bakker previously told the Sun-Times he was never a member of the group, but didn’t deny taking part in a Proud Boys Telegram channel.
In the chat logs, Bakker spoke harshly of a rainbow-colored police emblem the police department posted on social media to celebrate the LGBTQ community. “I’m not wearing any rainbow bull - - - -,” he said.
