The daughter of private investigator Dennis Stafford has filed
$1 million claims against the City of Hollister and San Benito
County.
Stafford’s daughter, who asked that her name not be released,
named former Hollister Police chiefs Larry Todd, Bill Pierpoint,
Capt. Bob Brooks and Sgt. Andy Burgess in the claim.
Both Stafford and his daughter, who is currently living on the
East Coast, declined to comment on the claims.
The daughter of private investigator Dennis Stafford has filed $1 million claims against the City of Hollister and San Benito County.
Stafford’s daughter, who asked that her name not be released, named former Hollister Police chiefs Larry Todd, Bill Pierpoint, Capt. Bob Brooks and Sgt. Andy Burgess in the claim.
Both Stafford and his daughter, who is currently living on the East Coast, declined to comment on the claims.
The complaint, which was filed on Oct. 3, is similar to the one filed by Stafford in that it accuses Todd, Pierpoint, District Attorney John Sarsfield, Sheriff Curtis Hill and other local officials of defaming his daughter’s character during a press conference on Sept. 10 at the Hollister Police Department and at the Sheriff’s Office.
The city and the county have up to 90 days to review and make a decision on whether to accept or reject her claim.
However, her claim is different from her father’s in that she is also asserting that during the statements to the press the officials released “privileged and confidential information to the public without lawful authority or authorization.”
Hollister City Attorney Elaine Cass said she has not yet reviewed the claim so she could not comment on it.
The claim contends that Sarsfield, Hill, Todd and other officials, while intentionally attempting to defame and embarrass Stafford, violated her right to privacy in his proposal to retry nearly 60 felony convictions dating back to 1984.
Sarsfield alleges there was possible misconduct by Stafford while he was still a peace officer. The alleged misconduct stems from previous prosecutors violating the Brady Standard, which is based on a 1963 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said prosecutors have to turn over any information they have that could benefit the defense’s case.
Sarsfield said his office discovered that Dennis Stafford, former district attorney’s inspector, was listed as a suspect in some police reports about a molestation case and that he possibly hid information about crimes.
The molestation case, which was later deemed unfounded by police, had reports with Stafford’s daughter’s name in it. At the time of the report, his daughter was a minor. State privacy laws prohibit the release of names of underage victims.
Sarsfield has repeatedly stated that he is simply doing what his office requires him to do, and that this is not a personal vendetta against Stafford.
“I have an obligation under the law and I’m going to continue to live up to that obligation,” Sarsfield said in an earlier interview.
He said the state Attorney General’s office knows that he is looking into these cases, and that the FBI is also investigating possible civil rights violations.
While Stafford’s daughter is just filing her claims against the city and the county, both government agencies recently rejected the $1 million claims that Stafford filed. Officials said it is standard procedure for local governments to reject claims.
Now that his claim has been rejected, Stafford has up to a year to either file a lawsuit, agree to a settlement or drop the case altogether, according to the state’s government code.
