Teen in sex scandal sues Richmond, police

The teenage sex worker at the center of a scandal that affected police departments throughout the Bay Area has filed suit against Richmond police officers, alleging that some had sex with her while she was a minor and that others turned a “blind eye” to her exploitation.

The 19-year-old woman, known variously as Jasmine and by her pseudonym Celeste Guap, said that Richmond Police Chief Allwyn Brown, former Chief Chris Magnus and internal affairs supervisor Lt. Brian Dickerson “failed to discipline or hold their officers responsible,” according to Oakland attorney John Burris, who is representing Jasmine. Five other Richmond officers were named in the suit along with the city of Richmond.

Burris said the Richmond officers “engaged with impunity in various sex acts with (Jasmine) while she was a minor and beyond, sometimes on duty and always acting in their capacity as police officers.” The attorney said the officers, most of them married, acted like “immoral frat boys” and should be fired.

Allegations of abuse of Jasmine have also been linked to police in Oakland, Livermore and San Francisco and sheriff ’s deputies in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. Allegations of Oakland officers sexually exploiting the teenage girl first became known in 2015, when Officer Brendan O’Brien committed suicide and left a note detailing his and other officers’ involvement with the girl.

The 20-page suit, seeking unspecified monetary damages, was filed Thursday in federal court in San Francisco.

In May, the city of Oakland paid Jasmine about $1 million to settle a similar suit against that city’s police.