HAYWARD, Calif. _ The first of seven police officers to be arraigned on criminal charges related to the sexual exploitation of a teen pleaded not guilty Friday, hours after Richmond officials announced discipline against 11 of their cops for their involvement in the sprawling East Bay sex-misconduct scandal.
Oakland police Officer Brian Bunton, 40, has been charged with felony conspiracy to obstruct justice for overt acts, for allegedly sending the teen a text on March 5 to tip her off about an undercover Oakland Police Department prostitution sting on International Boulevard.
The teen, who was 18 at the time of the text, told authorities she exchanged sex for the information Bunton gave her. Before a throng of media, Bunton, wearing a slate-colored suit and tie, pleaded not guilty, and his next appearance was set for next month.
The officer responded "Yes, your honor" multiple times during the arraignment but declined to comment to reporters outside the courtroom.
Bunton, 40, was also charged with a misdemeanor count of engaging in prostitution.
Bunton, who has two years of service with Oakland police, has until Monday to surrender and post $12,500 bail at Santa Rita Jail. His attorney, Dirk Manoukian, said his client, who is married with children, plans to do just that Monday, adding that he's cooperated with the investigation.
"In that statement, he expressed remorse and took responsibility for some of the actions," Manoukian said. "There have already been consequences here, so yes, he understands there will be consequences."
Manoukian referred all questions of Bunton's employment with Oakland police to his workplace attorney Michael Rains.
Hours before Bunton's arraignment, the Richmond city manager's office released a statement announcing that one officer would be fired, another demoted, two suspended and five others given letters of reprimand. The officials said by law they were not allowed to name these officers.
"I am sorry that the misconduct of these individuals has brought embarrassment to the city of Richmond and the Richmond Police Department," said Richmond police Chief Allwyn Brown in the statement. "Police officers must be held to a higher standard with regard to their personal and professional conduct because their effectiveness in serving the community depends on the public's trust. Integrity is indispensable to the position of police officer, and a breach of that integrity will not be tolerated at the Richmond Police Department."
The officials said the city's probe involved an examination of more than 10,000 text messages and cellphone records, more than 5,000 social media pages and contact with 45 individuals. Investigators logged 750 work hours to complete the probe, including 13 hours of recorded, voluntary testimony from the teenager during five interview sessions. The final report contains 275 pages of findings.
Two of the officers disciplined had already left the city before the investigation "for reasons unconnected with the misconduct," according to the statement. One of the two suspended officers will be on unpaid leave for 80 work hours and the other for 120 work hours.
The city outlined the appeals rights for the involved officers.
"I am confident that the chief of police, the city manager and Office of Professional Accountability have done a thorough job, and we are glad to put this investigation behind us," said Mayor Tom Butt. "In terms of discipline for the officers, this marks the beginning of a process which will continue to unfold."
He said the scandal has tarnished the reputation the department had built.
"I am both disappointed and outraged that the individual behavior of some Richmond police officers has brought discredit to the department and serves to undermine community trust," Butt said. "I know that this outrage is shared by my colleagues on the Richmond City Council."
The young woman at the heart of the scandal implicated five members of the Richmond force _ a lieutenant, two sergeants and two officers _ in a previous interview.
One of them, school resource Officer Jerred Tong, was subsequently placed on paid administrative leave. The five Richmond officers were off-duty and had encounters with the teen after she turned 18, she has said.
Officer Terrance Jackson, Lt. Andre Hill, Sgt. Armando Moreno and Sgt. Mike Rood were also named previously by the teen.
Charges are being filed by the Alameda County District Attorney's office against seven current or former members of the law enforcement agencies for alleged crimes within that county, including five in Oakland.
In addition to Bunton, Oakland Officer Giovanni LoVerde, 33, and Contra Costa County Deputy Ricardo Perez will be arraigned Sept. 30. Each are charged with felony oral copulation of a minor. Perez, who resigned from the Sheriff's Office in June, is also charged with two misdemeanor counts of engaging in lewd conduct for public sex acts in September and October 2015.
Retired Oakland Sgt. LeRoy Johnson and recently resigned Livermore Officer Daniel Black have been charged with misdemeanors. Two more officers, Oakland's Terryl Smith and Warit Uttapa, are facing misdemeanor charges for unauthorized searches of a criminal justice database and computer system. They have yet to be charged and could face additional charges in Contra Costa County.
The woman, a daughter of an Oakland police dispatcher, has said she had sex with 30 officers from various police departments, some while she was a minor. Her attorneys last week filed a $66 million claim against the city of Oakland.
The allegations first surfaced in September 2015 when Oakland police Officer Brendan O'Brien committed suicide and left a note detailing police's involvement with the teenager. This newspaper is not using her real name because she is the victim of a sex crime.
