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 Jason Lai pleaded not guilty to six misdemeanor counts of unlawful
access and use of criminal and Department of Motor Vehicle
information, said Alex Bastian, a spokesman for the San Francisco
District Attorney's Office.
The charges of unlawfully accessing the database grew out of an
investigation of a sexual assault allegation - ultimately unproven -
against Lai.
Also found during the investigation were multiple text messages full
of slurs and expletives referring to black, Indian, Latino, Muslim,
gay and transgender people, in the second scandal in a year over
slur-filled messages linked to local police.
 Lai was one of several officers caught up in the latest texting
scandal, which was disclosed last month by the District Attorney's
Office. Three officers, including Lai, are no longer with the
department, and a fourth is facing possible discipline from the
Police Commission.
Prosecutors said they did not have enough evidence to charge Lai in
connection with the sexual assault allegation. But former San
Francisco police Lieutenant Curtis Liu, who worked at the same
station as Lai, was charged with making a false statement in a
police report and obstructing a peace officer in connection with
that investigation, said Max Szabo, also a spokesman for the San
Francisco District Attorney's office.
Anthony Brass, an attorney for Liu, said in a voice message that his
client, a 26-year veteran of the department, was free on bail of
$21,000.
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Last year, 14 officers were caught up in a similar texting scandal,
prompting the review of thousands of cases as prosecutors sought to
make sure evidence would not be tainted by the scandal.
(In 6th paragraph corrects first name to Max Szabo, not Matt)
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis in Los Angeles; Editing by Sharon
Bernstein and Peter Cooney)
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