A former Metra police officer who was terminated for his actions during a trespassing arrest at Millennium Station in January 2015 has now been charged by the Cook County State’s Attorney with aggravated battery, perjury and official misconduct in connection with the arrest. Metra cooperated fully with the investigation that resulted in these charges.
Former officer David Robertson, 50, appeared in Cook County Bond Court and was released on his own recognizance.
The charges stem from an incident on Jan. 15, 2015, when Robertson arrested a suspect at Millennium Station and charged him with trespassing. At a preliminary hearing, Robertson testified that the suspect started a physical confrontation during the arrest.
While the case was pending, Robertson turned over to the Office of the Cook County State’s Attorney a video of the incident, which he had recorded on his cellphone while watching a playback of the original surveillance video. On Nov. 9, 2016, that office informed Metra that Robertson may have provided false testimony regarding the arrest, because the video contradicted his testimony. The video shows Robertson using what appears to be excessive force, contrary to Metra’s rules, policies and procedures.
Metra began an internal investigation immediately. Within 24 hours, Robertson and a second officer involved in the arrest were stripped of their police powers and removed from service without pay. Both officers were terminated from employment at Metra on Dec. 28, 2016. A third officer involved in the arrest had been terminated for unrelated issues before the internal investigation began.
“As an agency that now prides itself on having a well-run and professional police force, and after our own investigation into the matter, we are disturbed and deeply troubled by this conduct,” said Metra CEO/ Executive Director Don Orseno. “This conduct is unacceptable to us and will not be tolerated. It is not representative of the culture and standards of the Metra Police Department.”
The 115-person Metra Police Department has become a much more professionally run, modern, efficient and effective police force as a result of five years of reform and modernization efforts.
Those efforts began in October 2012, when Metra hired a nationally recognized law-enforcement advisory firm to assess the department’s operations and capabilities and provide assistance in adopting best practices in railroad public safety. Following that firm’s report, Metra hired Chief Joseph Perez, a veteran commander from the Illinois State Police, to guide the department’s transformation.
Perez brought in police veterans from outside Metra and promoted some from within to create a command team with wide and diverse experience. He adopted a clearly defined mission and has been making numerous changes and adopting a variety of reforms in the furtherance of that mission, including updating the police policies and procedures manual.
In March 2015, Perez implemented a policy on use of force, which includes a “Response to Resistance” form that initiates the formal process by which evidence or allegations of excessive or unreasonable force by Metra officers is preserved and investigated at the highest levels in the Metra Police Department.
Perez also improved the department’s responsiveness and reduced overtime by 33 percent by reorganizing patrols by area instead of by line and assigning manpower based on shift activity.
He instituted regular training on criminal and traffic law, accident reconstruction and firearms and established a 12-week field training program on all things Metra, including its train operations and procedures, the system’s geography and customer service.
Perez and his team also created a full-time detective division (including internal investigations) and a new police squad whose primary duty is to patrol trains. Officers wear new uniforms and drive new police cars with a different paint scheme that reflects a reformed force. They have been equipped with Tasers (which have reduced injuries to police and arrestees) and soon will be fitted with body cameras. They were issued laptops for field reporting and are using new software to write police reports — all in an effort to adopt the best police practices in the country.
