- A high-ranking official with the Chicago Police Department denied on Tuesday that she pushed for misdemeanor charges for an off-duty officer who attacked a female bartender in a beating that was caught on videotape and went viral.
Debra Kirby, who was the head of Internal Affairs Division at the time of the 2007 beating, testified she wanted to seek felony charges against the officer, Anthony Abbate.
Kirby appeared tense on the witness stand in the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse as she answered a series of questions by attorney Terry Ekl, who is representing the bartender, Karolina Obrycka, in her federal suit against Abbate and the city.
Never let them see you sweat, Deb. But then, when you've got so many skeletons foisted on you by previous administrations and you're slowly coming to the realization that the closet you're supposed to hide them in is sorely lacking in space, then you've got problems on a scale unseen since Summerdale. How many other agencies were offered the SOS investigation? And for how many years?
- Kirby and Ekl sparred over the first question, disputing whether she was called to the superintendent's "conference room" or "office" when the department brass first learned of the videotape of the beating at Jesse's Short Stop Inn on the Northwest Side.
Wow, the first question? Talk about setting the stage.
- Kirby also denied directing Internal Affairs Division investigators to take a blank misdemeanor complaint form to Obrycka's house for her to sign.
She just threw the entire Internal Affairs Division under the bus. Now the question becomes who catches the Rule 14?