The parolee who was being pursued by Chicago Police Officer Krystal Rivera when she was unintentionally shot and killed by her partner received an eight-year prison sentence on Thursday. This came after he admitted guilt to one of the lesser charges filed against him, according to court records.
Jaylin Arnold, 28, confessed to the charge of being a felon in possession of a weapon, with two or more previous gun convictions. This admission led to an agreement for a sentence from Judge Barbara Dawkins. Additionally, Dawkins sentenced him to a concurrent three-year term for a narcotics offense. Prosecutors dismissed 90 other felony charges, including 65 Class X charges, which are the most severe felonies in Illinois short of murder.
Due to the state’s standard 50% sentence reduction policy and credit for 333 days previously spent in jail before his trial, Arnold is likely to be paroled in about three years and one month.
On June 5, 2025, Arnold was already on parole for a prior firearm possession conviction when Rivera and her partner, Carlos Baker, reportedly saw him with a firearm and an extended magazine in his waistband near the 8200 block of South Drexel Avenue.
Rivera and Baker pursued him into a nearby apartment building. As Baker forced open an apartment door, he was immediately faced with a second man pointing a firearm at him, officials stated.
Body camera footage released recently by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability seems to show Baker retreating from the doorway, losing his balance, and discharging a single shot that hit Rivera in an area not protected by her ballistic vest.
Baker told investigators he believed the gunshot originated from inside the apartment rather than from his service weapon. He sought cover by moving up a stairwell and called for backup. Approximately 90 seconds later, he found Rivera’s body on the landing outside the apartment.
The narrative presented by the body camera footage differs from the initial account provided by officials, who suggested Baker shot Rivera as she pursued Arnold down a hallway within the apartment.
Arnold managed to escape that night, but CPD apprehended him two weeks later. Prosecutors noted in a detention filing that video evidence showed him possessing a firearm with an extended magazine and narcotics multiple times during the investigation into Rivera’s death.
The man accused of pointing the firearm at Baker from within the apartment, Adrian Rucker, remains in custody awaiting trial.
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