San Bernardino County gang prosecutor resigns after backlash over racist rants on social media

Former San Bernardino County gang prosecutor Michael Selyem, who was suspended in the wake of his racist rants on social media that triggered a backlash from civil rights leaders, has resigned from the District Attorney’s Office.

Selyem, a former Orange County sheriff’s deputy-turned-prosecutor, voluntarily resigned on Jan. 2, county spokeswoman Felisa Cardona said Tuesday.

Civil rights leaders lashed out at Selyem in July after the Southern California News Group revealed the veteran prosecutor’s racist and xenophobic rants on Facebook and Instagram, in which he attacked Mexican immigrants, former first Lady Michelle Obama, U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, and a still unidentified victim of a police shooting. Selyem’s critics quickly called for his termination for what charged was “hateful rhetoric.”

Although no longer working for the county, Selyem, 51, of Placentia will continue collecting pay, in the form of accrued leave time, biweekly through April 26. He also will retire from the county on or before that time, according to his separation agreement with the county. Cardona said Selyem’s annual pay is $155,168.

The county, according to the six-page separation agreement, will not appeal any award of unemployment insurance benefits to Selyem should he apply for and be granted them. According to the agreement, it “is not, in any manner, to be construed as an admission of liability on the part of either party.” The agreement also stipulates that Selyem will not sue the county.

It is still unclear when Selyem posted his offensive social media rants, which he subsequently deleted. On Waters, he said, “Being a loud-mouthed (expletive) in the ghetto you would think someone would have shot this bitch by now …”

In an online argument with someone over the police shooting of a civilian, Selyem wrote, “That s—bag got exactly what he deserved. … You reap what you sow. And by the way go f— yourself you liberal s—bag.”

It was unclear which police shooting Selyem was referencing, and whether or not it was an open case in San Bernardino County or had occurred elsewhere.

Selyem also posted a doctored picture of former first lady Michelle Obama holding a sign saying, “Trump grabbed my penis.”

Another Selyem post included a Facebook meme of a smiling Mexican man wearing a sombrero with the words, “Mexican word of the day: Hide.”

The controversy drew the Rev. Jessie Jackson and other civil rights leaders to the city in protest. They demanded Selyem’s ouster and questioned how any criminal defendant, especially blacks and Latinos, could get a fair shake with Selyem as the prosecutor.

San Bernardino County Public Defender G. Christopher Gardner said lawyers from his office reviewed more than 500 cases prosecuted by Selyem, but found no conflicts. One deputy public defender, however, subpoenaed Selyem’s employment records in September and questioned why he was allowed to continue working cases and negotiate a plea bargain with at least one defendant from the period of June 25, the day the District Attorney’s Office launched its investigation, until July 9, when Selyem was suspended.

Selyem worked as a jail deputy for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department from 1994 to 2002, when he retired for undisclosed reasons. He moved on to law school, graduating from UCLA’s School of Law in 2004. Two years later, he then went to work for the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office, where he worked until he was suspended on July 9, 2018.

Reached by telephone Tuesday, District Attorney Jason Anderson, who was sworn into office Tuesday, said that while he was not with the office during the Selyem controversy and administrative investigation, he did speak with come of the civil rights leaders who took issue with Selyem’s comments and demanded his termination, telling them there would be zero tolerance for such conduct under his watch.

“There’s no place for any prejudice or bias in the D.A.’s Office,” Anderson said. “I assured them that there would be no place for that in my office going forward.”

A. Majadi, president of the San Bernardino branch of the NAACP, said in a telephone interview Tuesday that Selyem’s resignation was a long time coming, but expected. He said the District Attorney’s Office must ensure such conduct never happens again with its employees.

“When we met with the new D.A., the community was very clear about the changes they wanted to see in the office,” Majadi said. Among the demands of civil rights leaders was a thorough review of all the cases in the hardcore gang unit prosecuted under Selyem’s watch, especially cases with gang enhancements. Additionally, culture competency training is a necessity, Majadi said.

“You can’t undue a mindset by getting rid of one person when a culture has been created,” Majadi said.