Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver

California's premier full-service law firm with an emphasis on the representation of peace officers in disciplinary, criminal, labor, workers' compensation, personal injury and other civil matters.

  • About Us
  • Practice Areas
    • Labor Representation
    • Civil Litigation
    • Personal Injury
      • Example of Case Results
    • Workers’ Compensation
    • Maritime Law
    • Estate Planning
    • DOE Security Clearance Hearings
    • Peace Officers
    • Firefighters
    • EMS Agency Investigations
    • Criminal Defense
    • CalPERS Appeals
  • Our Team
  • Classes
  • Media
    • Bulletins
    • RLS in the News
  • Resources
    • Links
    • Resources
    • Newsletters
  • Clients
  • Career Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer

Officer’s lawyer says texts showed bad taste, not animus

March 16, 2015 by Hien Nguyen

From: SFGate
By Jaxon Van Derbeken  3/15/15

The attorney for one of the four San Francisco police officers under investigation for sending racist and homophobic text messages said Sunday her client’s messages, while “wholly unacceptable,” were not reflective of his true attitudes on the job.

Noel Schwab, 49, a 16-year veteran, was reassigned last month from Central Division to the communications division after he was identified as having exchanged some of the text messages with former Sgt. Ian Furminger, who is now facing a 40-month sentence on corruption charges.

Schwab’s attorney, Julia Fox, said Sunday that Schwab “did not intend to malign anyone, generally or specifically.”

“While the alleged comments were certainly bad taste, and wholly unacceptable, they were intended for a specific recipient and were not indicative of any animus that Officer Schwab has toward any group or class.”

Sources said Schwab had told department officials he intended to leave the department amid the scandal, but Fox said that her client has not made up his mind.

“At this point, it is his intention to give a responsible and thoughtful analysis regarding his options,” she said.

In addition to Schwab, the other officers in the text-message scandal have been identified by multiple sources as Michael Robison, Rain Daugherty and Michael Celis.

Also on Sunday, Public Defender Jeff Adachi said a preliminary analysis shows that Schwab and Celis wrote the police reports in about 120 prosecution cases since 2012, when the last texts were sent. He said those cases will now have to be scrutinized in light of the bias inherent in the messages.

“It can have huge implications because many of the cases involve prosecutions of African Americans,” Adachi said.

He added that he has spoken to the District Attorney George Gascón, who promised to act quickly to review the officers’ role in the scandal and report back on any case where the messages might raise a question of their bias.

Filed Under: RLS In The News Tagged With: julia-fox

Consultation Form

Offices across California to serve you.
Contact us now to schedule a consultation.
Contact form not loading? Click here!
Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver, PC publishes this website as a service to our clients and other friends for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be used as a substitute for specific legal advice or opinions, and the transmission of information through this website is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship between sender and receiver. Internet subscribers and online readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel.

© 2023 Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver, PC. All Rights Reserved. | Disclaimer

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie settingsACCEPTREJECT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT
  • Contact Us

  • News Alerts

Official logo for Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver
Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver Logo
  • About Us
  • Practice Areas
    ▼
    • Labor Representation
    • Civil Litigation
    • Personal Injury
      ▼
      • Example of Case Results
    • Workers’ Compensation
    • Maritime Law
    • Estate Planning
    • DOE Security Clearance Hearings
    • Peace Officers
    • Firefighters
    • EMS Agency Investigations
    • Criminal Defense
    • CalPERS Appeals
  • Our Team
  • Classes
  • Media
    ▼
    • Bulletins
    • RLS in the News
  • Resources
    ▼
    • Links
    • Resources
    • Newsletters
  • Clients
  • Career Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer
Hotline phone numbers. Northern California: 925-609-1699. Southern California: 310-393-1486.