© Chicago Police DepartmentChicago police Officer Corey Deanes
Cook County prosecutors said Officer Corey Deanes, while on patrol in a marked police car in the Lincoln Park and Lakeview communities, pulled over or approached the women when each was alone late at night, commented on their looks and hugged or touched them inappropriately.
Prosecutors proposed that Deanes be released on his own recognizance, but Judge John Fitzgerald Lyke Jr. set bond at $200,000, calling the officer's actions "extremely scary and troubling."
"We always forget the psychological effect this has on people," Lyke said. "You have the ability to stop somebody at night, and they're totally alone."
Deanes, 47, a veteran of nearly 14 years with the department, faces one felony count of aggravated battery, three felony counts of official misconduct and two counts of misdemeanor battery.
All three women identified Deanes as the officer in photo arrays, prosecutors said. Surveillance camera video from a nearby business also corroborated the account of one alleged victim, they said.
After directing a 23-year-old woman to a secluded and poorly lit area about 11:30 p.m. on Aug, 28, 2017, he hugged her and and slid his hand down her back, touching her buttocks over her clothing, prosecutors said. He also threatened to write her a ticket ostensibly for an illegal turn if she did not give him her phone number, the charges alleged, but he did not run a name check contrary to ordinary Police Department policy.
About 3 a.m. last July 1, a 29-year-old woman who had called police for assistance at her home said Deanes expressed interest in her outfit, took hold of her wrist and extended her arm so that her shorts and tank top were exposed, prosecutors said. He also asked why she had been out so late and pulled on the front and back pockets of her shorts, they said.
Then about 12:15 a.m. on July 13, Deanes approached a 22-year-old woman, called her a "pretty little thing" and asked why she was walking alone, prosecutors said. He then grabbed and hugged her, asked her to go out on a date and sought her phone number, the charges alleged.
Two of the women called police that same night to complain, but one of the women was too afraid to open the door of her home when an officer responded to take her report, prosecutors said. Her father accompanied her to a police station the next day to report the incident. The third woman filed an online complaint three days later with the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.
Superintendent Eddie Johnson issued a statement calling Deanes' conduct "egregious" and "an insult" if proven.
"This investigation was conducted with the full cooperation from victims by CPD's Bureau of Internal Affairs and is a testament to our ability to police ourselves," Johnson said. "There is no place in this department for illegal activity, and I won't stand for it."
Deanes was relieved of his police powers on July 24, 2018 and sent to work at a city call center on paid desk duty, records show. Before all that, he was a patrolman assigned to the Police Department's Town Hall District, which covers such areas as Lincoln Park, Lakeview and Roscoe Village.
Before sheriff's deputies escorted Deanes to the lockup following his court appearance, Deanes' lawyer, Timothy Grace, recommended the officer be placed in protective custody at the jail. He would need to post $20,000 - 10 percent of the bail - to be released.
When Lyke said that decision would be up to the sheriff's office, Grace raised his voice slightly in frustration, saying, "Judge, my client is a Chicago police officer. He can't go to general population."
After court, Grace slammed the high bond, saying Deanes didn't get a fair shake because he's a police officer.
"I just think that the bond is a little absurd for a person who has absolutely no (criminal) background," Grace said. "Go back in there and listen to the bonds that (Lyke) sets on serious cases and then we'll see how fair (it is)."
Reader Comments
to our Newsletter