COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — A Hyde Park man was arrested and charged with impersonating a police officer Thursday when a real cop found him carrying a "fully loaded" 357 magnum and donning a CPD uniform.
When a security guard at Union Health Services Clinic in the Medical District saw Steve Buckner walk in to the clinic in his getup, he knew something wasn't right, according to court records. The security guard called police.
Real police officers waited for Buckner, 57, to leave the clinic and followed him, according to court records. When the officers pulled him over in the 1200 block of West Taylor Street shortly after noon on Thursday, they allegedly found him wearing the uniform and carrying a gun.
Asked if he was a police officer, Buckner said, "Not verbatim," according to court records, and added that he was with the fraternal order of police.
Buckner also allegedly had several items with his name on them and official CPD insignias, which police discovered later.
A Cook County judge ordered Buckner held on $30,000 bond for impersonating an officer and unlawful use of a weapon.
