A Night of Horror
Karolina Obrycka, a 24-year-old immigrant from Poland, had no idea that one night at work would change her life forever. Working behind the bar, Karolina encountered Anthony Abbate, a Chicago police officer with a known history of violence. Abbate had already been kicked out of the bar once for attacking a customer, but this night would prove even worse.
On that fateful night, Abbate was drinking heavily and harassing other patrons. He had already punched one customer, put them in a headlock, and chased them around the bar, all while flexing his muscles and yelling, “Chicago Police Department.” When Karolina refused to serve him another drink, Abbate’s rage exploded. He went behind the bar and brutally attacked Karolina, who weighed just 125 pounds. He threw her against the wall, slammed her to the ground, and viciously kicked and punched her. At one point, he even pulled out a handful of her hair. The attack only ended when another patron pulled Abbate away, allowing Karolina to escape.
The Cover-Up Begins
As horrific as the attack was, what happened next was even more disturbing. Karolina immediately called 911 after Abbate left the bar. When Chicago police officers arrived, she told them about the attack and even offered them video footage as evidence. The bar owner prepared to show the video to the officers, but as soon as he went to the back to set it up, the officers left the bar without saying a word. They didn’t even attempt to find Abbate, who was listed in the police report only as “Tony,” with no mention of his status as a police officer.
Within minutes of the attack, Abbate and his partner began contacting their friends inside and outside the police department. Just two hours later, two of these friends—both fellow officers—showed up at the bar. They offered to pay Karolina’s medical bills and compensate her for time off work if she agreed not to file a complaint. When she refused, their tactics escalated. They threatened to arrest patrons of the bar and falsely accuse Karolina of allowing them to drive drunk if the video tape wasn’t destroyed. Karolina stood her ground, but the stress forced her to quit her job just days later.
The Fight for Justice
Karolina eventually met with higher-ups in the Chicago Police Department and showed them the video of the attack. But nothing happened. It wasn’t until the video was released to the media that Abbate was finally charged with a felony. He was convicted and sentenced to just two years of probation, and eventually fired from the department. But the story didn’t end there.
Determined to hold Abbate and the City of Chicago accountable, Karolina filed a civil rights lawsuit against both. She argued that Abbate’s actions were a direct result of the Chicago Police Department’s culture of silence and failure to discipline officers—a culture that made Abbate feel invincible. Karolina filed what is known as a Monell Policy claim, which asserts that her civil rights were violated because of a government policy or custom.
The City’s Relentless Defense
The City of Chicago fought Karolina’s case for five long years, doing everything in its power to have it dismissed. Despite the city’s refusal to settle, even when Karolina offered to do so for $400,000, the case went to trial. After a two-week trial, the jury found in favor of Karolina and awarded her $850,000. Yet, instead of settling, the City of Chicago had spent an astonishing $5 million on private lawyers to fight the case—nearly six times the amount Karolina had initially sought.
A Pattern of Injustice
What happened to Karolina Obrycka is not an isolated incident. Citizens’ rights continue to be violated, and the City of Chicago continues to spend millions of dollars to defend the indefensible actions of bad police officers. This pattern of injustice disproportionately affects Black Chicagoans. Rather than taking responsibility and settling cases, the city would rather spend taxpayer money to protect corrupt officers.
Since 2010, Chicago has spent nearly a billion dollars on police misconduct lawsuits. Over the past five years alone, the city has paid more than $200 million to private lawyers defending police officers in these suits. To put that in perspective, in 2018, Chicago spent more than twice as much on private lawyers defending cops as it did to fund the city agency tasked with investigating police misconduct.
The True Cost of Silence
The money Chicago has spent on police misconduct lawsuits since 2010 could have been used for countless other public needs. Instead, it has been used to shield police officers from accountability, perpetuating a culture of impunity that endangers citizens and wastes public resources.
Karolina Obrycka’s story is a stark reminder of the human cost of this broken system—a system where the lives and rights of citizens are routinely sacrificed to protect the powerful. The question remains: How many more lives will be shattered, and how much more money will be wasted before real change is made?
