Photo : Photo by Bryan Bedder ( Getty Images for Glamour )

The San Bernardino, Calif., lead gang prosecutor who called Maxine Waters a “loud mouth c*** in the ghetto” and questioned why she hadn’t been shot has been suspended, according to a district attorney’s office announcement on Tuesday.


An investigation into Michael Selyem’s racist social media posts is underway after screenshots were leaked to the press and public officials last week. According to KABC-TV (h/t Newsweek), Selyem is officially on administrative leave until the DA’s office completes their inquiry.

“The San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office does not condone hate, discrimination or incitement of violence,” Mike Ramos, the outgoing district attorney said in a statement posted on Monday afternoon. “Our community and the entire criminal justice system depends on having fair, ethical, and unbiased prosecutors.”


Ramos added that “disciplinary action leading up to termination” was a possibility.

The most eye-catching post from Selyem’s Facebook and Instagram accounts was one in which he singled out Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters—“Being a loud-mouthed cunt in the ghetto you would think someone would have shot this bitch by now …” he posted.

But he also made derogatory statements about Michelle Obama, posting a doctored photo of the former first lady holding up a sign that reads, “Trump grabbed my penis,” and made racist statements about Latinx people and immigrants.


“I am all for white males immigrating here legally and starting a business,” he wrote alongside a link to a Breitbart post. “It is the terrorist a-holes sneaking in here wanting to kill me an (sic) my family that I am opposed to.” The article was about Budweiser’s Super Bowl ad celebrating immigrant success stories.

Selyem also once posted a photo of a man in a giant sombrero with the caption, “Mexican word of the day: Hide.”


According to Newsweek, which cited Selyem’s LinkedIn page, Selyem has served as the lead attorney for the San Bernardino Central Hardcore Gang Unit since 2006. As the lead prosecutor, Selyem oversaw the response to an increase in gang-related crime in San Bernardino, as gang members moved into the area from neighboring Los Angeles County. The Orange County Register reports that most of the gangs Selyem prosecutes are Latinx.