COPA releases body-worn camera video showing fatal shooting of Chicago Police Officer Krystal Rivera

Ofc. Rivera shot, killed by CPD partner Carlos Baker while chasing suspects, officials say

ByMark Rivera and Barb Markoff, Christine Tressel and Tom Jones WLS logo
Friday, April 17, 2026 9:41PM
COPA releases video showing fatal shooting of CPD Ofc. Krystal Rivera

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The ABC7 I-Team has been pouring over the video showing the moments surrounding the deadly shooting of Chicago Police Officer Krystal Rivera.

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability releasing video Friday showing the moment Officer Krystal Rivera was fatally shot by her partner Carlos Baker last June.

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The video is difficult to watch. It shows CPD partners Krystal Rivera and Carlos Baker chasing a man into an apartment building in the Chatham neighborhood last summer. Police stated at the time they believed that man was armed. The video shows Baker firing one shot that struck and killed Rivera unintentionally, according to police.

The body-worn camera video from Officer Baker shows he and Officer Rivera approaching an apartment building around 9:50 p.m. in the 8200-block of South Drexel Avenue in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood the night of June 5, 2025.

Both officers asked a man to show them his hands before entering and chased that man, who entered an apartment.

Rivera was directly behind Baker in the narrow hallway.

Baker kicked down the door as the suspect flipped over the couch before another man, seen in surveillance video released by COPA, exited a room with a long gun in hand.

Baker appeared to react, turning and firing one shot.

Rivera then fell to the ground. Baker ascended the stairs, calling in shots fired and asking for an ambulance.

About two minutes later, Baker can be seen going to check on his partner before additional units arrived to transport her.

A video was released four months after Krystal Rivera's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Baker and CPD, citing a volatile history between the two who had been romantically involved. Rivera had requested a new partner after they broke up.

Baker has been at the center of multiple investigations by the Chicago Police Department and has been relieved of police powers. The I-Team previously reported Baker also faced three suspensions and two reprimands in just four years with the department.

There were 11 seconds between Baker and Rivera entering the building before she was shot. Police have said since the beginning Officer Baker unintentionally shot Officer Rivera.

Attorneys representing the Rivera family released a lengthy statement, saying they plan to conduct a full forensic video audit and analysis. That statement also says in part: "The edited video clips released by COPA today regarding the death of Chicago Police Officer Krystal Rivera raise a number of serious questions. The first and foremost being that this is NOT all of the body-worn video footage from the event. What has been released is a curated narrative meant to invent a false truth. All body worn footage is essential to the public understanding the full scope of this tragedy."

The ABC7 I-Team has reached out to COPA for a response to that statement. The I-Team has also reached out to attorneys for Officer Baker, but have not heard back.

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