CHICAGO POLICE OFFICER FACES FIRING AFTER REPEATEDLY USING RACIAL AND HOMOPHOBIC SLURS ON DUTY
730 BOOM RADIO | CHICAGO NEWS & POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY
October 16, 2026
đź“ŤCHICAGO, ILLINOISÂ | A veteran Chicago police officer with more than three decades on the force is facing termination after investigators determined that he repeatedly used racist and homophobic slurs while on duty, including an anti-Black slur directed at a police dispatcher.
Officer John Kaporis, who joined the Chicago Police Department in 1995, was caught making the offensive remarks on his own squad car's recording system.
According to an October 12 investigation by WTTW News, the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) concluded that Kaporis repeatedly violated departmental rules and demonstrated behavior that raised serious concerns about his ability to police communities without racial bias.
Former Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling agreed that Kaporis should be fired.
But despite the recommendation, the officer has not been immediately terminated.
CAUGHT ON HIS OWN POLICE CAMERA
The incident occurred on April 12, 2022, while Kaporis was patrolling alone.
According to disciplinary records, his squad car's recording system captured him using anti-Black and anti-gay slurs repeatedly.
Investigators determined that he used an anti-Black slur three times within approximately 20 minutes.
One of those remarks was directed at a Black dispatcher after Kaporis was assigned to investigate a traffic crash.
The footage was discovered during a random review by a police supervisor, who reported the remarks for investigation.
COPA determined that Kaporis knowingly made the comments while on duty, in uniform, and with his vehicle's recording equipment operating.
Investigators expressed concern that his behavior reflected an inability to meet the department's standards for unbiased policing.
OFFICER DENIES BEING RACIST
During the investigation, Kaporis denied being racist and disputed that he intentionally used discriminatory language.
According to WTTW, he suggested that the anti-Black slur could carry different meanings depending on his personal interpretation.
COPA investigators rejected his explanation.
They also questioned his sincerity, noting that he appeared more concerned about how others might interpret his remarks than the harm associated with the language itself.
The agency ultimately recommended his termination.
MORE THAN 50 COMPLAINTS DURING HIS CAREER
Perhaps one of the most troubling details involves Kaporis' disciplinary history.
According to records reviewed by WTTW, he has been the subject of 52 complaints since 2000.
His history also includes a one-year suspension in 2003 following allegations that he filed a false police report involving a claimed forgery.
In a separate April 2022 incident, investigators found that Kaporis used racial slurs targeting Black women.
That incident also involved allegations of dishonesty and an unusual police response at his mother's residence.
In April 2024, Snelling stripped Kaporis of his police powers, removing his badge and firearm.
Kaporis is currently listed as an inactive member of the Chicago Police Department.
WHY HASN'T HE BEEN FIRED?
Although COPA and former Superintendent Snelling agreed that Kaporis should be terminated, his dismissal remains complicated by an ongoing legal dispute involving police disciplinary procedures.
The dispute concerns whether officers facing serious misconduct allegations can have their cases decided by private arbitration rather than the Chicago Police Board.
The Illinois Supreme Court heard arguments in the matter in September 2026.
A ruling could affect how Chicago handles the dismissal of officers accused of serious misconduct.
Until that legal question is resolved, some termination proceedings remain delayed.
WATCHDOG FINDS BROADER PROBLEMS WITH RACIAL SLURS
Kaporis' case comes amid additional scrutiny of how Chicago disciplines officers accused of racist behavior.
A September 30 report from the Chicago Office of Inspector General examined disciplinary cases involving 19 officers found to have used racial or ethnic slurs between 2021 and 2024.
According to the report:
Sixteen of the 19 officers received suspensions of 30 days or less.
One officer received a 60-day suspension.
Two officers faced recommendations for termination.
Approximately half were recommended for cultural competency training.
The watchdog concluded that disciplinary recommendations were inconsistent and called for clearer standards when officers engage in discriminatory verbal abuse.
The findings raise questions about whether Chicago's disciplinary system responds consistently to misconduct involving race.
LADY RED'S TAKE: 52 COMPLAINTS AND YOU'RE STILL WEARING A BADGE?
Now, wait a minute.
Fifty-two complaints?
Not two. Not five. Fifty-two.
And this officer was still employed by the Chicago Police Department?
Let me make something clear: A complaint is not automatically proof of wrongdoing. But when an officer accumulates that many complaints, the public has every reason to ask how those allegations were investigated and what corrective action followed.
Then we learn that his own police camera recorded him repeatedly using racist and homophobic slurs while on duty.
And his explanation was essentially that the language meant something different to him?
The community deserves better than that.
Here's what I want to know.
How many Black citizens did this officer stop, question, search, or arrest during his career?
Were any of those encounters influenced by racial prejudice?
Did his testimony help secure convictions?
And if so, have prosecutors reviewed whether his documented conduct raises credibility or disclosure concerns?
I'm not suggesting every arrest he made was unlawful. But when investigators themselves question an officer's ability to engage in unbiased policing, reviewing potentially affected cases becomes a legitimate public concern.
I believe officers with substantiated patterns of racial misconduct should face meaningful accountability, and cases potentially affected by that misconduct should receive appropriate independent scrutiny.
And let's talk about the bigger picture.
Chicago has been operating under a federal consent decree intended to address longstanding unconstitutional policing practices.
Yet here we are, still discussing officers using racial slurs and a disciplinary system struggling to remove people accused of serious misconduct.
A badge is supposed to represent public service.
It is not a lifetime pass to escape accountability.
And when the public loses confidence in the people enforcing the law, the damage extends far beyond one officer.
The question isn't simply whether John Kaporis should lose his job. It's whether the system did enough to protect the public while he still had it.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Kaporis remains inactive as the legal dispute over police disciplinary proceedings continues.
The Illinois Supreme Court's eventual ruling could determine how serious misconduct cases proceed and whether officers may pursue arbitration rather than public Police Board hearings.
Meanwhile, Chicago's police oversight agencies face renewed pressure to establish consistent disciplinary standards and strengthen accountability.
For residents, the central issue remains whether officers who demonstrate racial prejudice can be trusted to enforce the law fairly.
730 BOOM RADIO
IT HITS DIFFERENT. EVERY TIME. BOOM! đź’Ą
Comments