Oakland cop pleads not guilty to charges in sex scandal

An Oakland police officer pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of engaging in prostitution and obstruction of justice, becoming the first of seven current and former Bay Area law enforcement members to appear in court in connection with a sexual misconduct scandal involving a teenager.

Officer Brian Bunton, who marked his two-year anniversary with the Oakland Police Department on Thursday, was ordered to surrender to the Santa Rita Jail by Monday or post $12,500 bail, which his attorney said he probably would do.

Former Oakland Police Sergeant Leroy Johnson leaves a court appearance at the Fremont Hall of Justice on Monday, Oct. 31, 2016, in Fremont, Calif. Johnson faces misdemeanor charges for failing to report a crime in relation to his department's sexual misconduct scandal involving a teenage prostitute. less Former Oakland Police Sergeant Leroy Johnson leaves a court appearance at the Fremont Hall of Justice on Monday, Oct. 31, 2016, in Fremont, Calif. Johnson faces misdemeanor charges for failing to report a ... more Photo: Noah Berger, Special To The Chronicle Photo: Noah Berger, Special To The Chronicle Image 1 of / 20 Caption Close Oakland cop pleads not guilty to charges in sex scandal 1 / 20 Back to Gallery

The Alameda County district attorney’s office plans to prosecute Bunton and six other East Bay officers for allegedly improper contact they had with the 19-year-old woman at the center of the sexual misconduct investigation. The charges against Bunton stem from texting conversations he had with the young woman — who previously went by Celeste Guap, but now wants to be called by her first name, Jasmine.

Jasmine has said she had sex with 29 law enforcement officers in the Bay Area in the last two years. Some of the interactions allegedly happened when she was 17, too young to legally give consent. She said some of the officers paid her, while others tipped her off about prostitution stings — as Bunton is accused of doing — or ran the names of people she knew through law enforcement databases.

“She always just wanted it to go away,” Jasmine’s attorney, Pamela Price, said Friday after attending Bunton’s arraignment. “Jasmine now is in the process of recovery and redemption.”

Bunton, 40, told Jasmine on March 5 to stay away from a specific area as police conducted an undercover operation targeting prostitution-related crimes, authorities say. Jasmine had sex with him in exchange for the information, prosecutors allege.

Two days later, he texted her to ask if she had “made all her money,” then told her she “needed a better manager” when she said she hadn’t, authorities said.

Jasmine — who saved Bunton’s contact information on her phone under the title “Superman” — provided screen shots of their text conversations to prosecutors.

Bunton, who is married and has children, did not speak with reporters Friday in the Hayward Hall of Justice. His defense attorney, Dirk Manoukian, called Bunton “a family man,” and said he was cooperating with investigators. He took responsibility and expressed remorse for his actions, Manoukian said.

“There has already been consequences here,” Manoukian said outside court. “Absolutely he understands there will be consequences.”

Also Friday, Richmond began the process of firing one police officer and disciplining eight others after an internal affairs investigation implicated them in the scandal.

Richmond officials will seek to demote one officer, suspend one for 80 hours, suspend another for 120 hours and reprimand five others.

All the officers are currently employed by the department and on full duty, except the officer facing dismissal, said City Manager Bill Lindsay. That officer is on administrative leave, said Lindsay, who declined to release his name.

In addition to the nine officers facing discipline, two others were found to have broken policies, but they have since left the department, Lindsay said.

Specific details on the misconduct of the officers were not released.

Richmond Police Chief Allwyn Brown said earlier this month that none of the officers investigated in his department had committed any crimes.

Richmond Mayor Tom Butt said he was “both disappointed and outraged” by the behavior of the officers involved in the scandal.

Price, the civil rights attorney representing Jasmine, blamed Richmond police for sending the teenager to a drug rehabilitation clinic in Florida last month in the midst of multiple criminal and internal affairs investigations. She was arrested at the facility when she tried to leave and got into a fight with an employee.

On Friday, Price said she was stunned that Bunton‘s bail had been set at $12,500, while Jasmine had been held on $300,000 bail in Florida. She eventually pleaded no contest to misdemeanor battery.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov