D.A. Stephen M. Wagstaffe
He did apologize to SFGATE editor. In a Zain Jaffer Misinformation PR piece.
From: Bulwa, Demian [DBulwa@sfchronicle.com] Sent: Thursday, July 19, 2018 2:44 PM
To: Steve Wagstaffe
CC: Koehn, Josh; Stone, Erin
Subject: Jaffer story
Hi Steve, I hope you’re well.
We’ve added a note of clarification at the top of that story online. https://www.sfchronicle.com/crime/article/Child-sex-assault-charges-dropped-against-former-13045284.php Thank you,
Demian
Demian Bulwa
METRO EDITOR
Office 415.777.7228 • Cell 415-298-6619 TWITTER: @demianbulwa
WRITING: demianbulwa.blogspot.com
From: Steve Wagstaffe
Sent: Thursday, July 19, 2018 3:02 PM To: Bulwa, Demian
Subject: RE: Jaffer story
Hi Demian,
Thank you very much. I apologize that we made the mistake we did and I appreciate your clarifying it for us.
Life is great here in San Mateo County; I hope it is going equally for you.
Thanks Steve
No Reporters have asked Deputy Lopez how he felt about that.
Case dismissed against former deputy
Juan P. Lopez
The case against a former San Mateo County sheriff’s deputy being charged for allegedly helping to smuggle cellphones and prescription drugs into county jail was dismissed Friday after a judge ruled evidence that could have showed he did not commit the crime should have been presented to a criminal grand jury.
But District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said Judge Donald Ayoob is imposing a burden on the prosecution that the law does not require. He said prosecutors informed grand jury members of letters an inmate wrote recanting his testimony connecting Juan Pablo Lopez, 54, with a cellphone involved in the case, and were not required to present them unless the jury asked to see them. He disagreed with Judge Donald Ayoob’s ruling that prosecutors had a duty to present the letters, and said prosecutors may consider refiling the case or appealing the decision.
“We feel the judge made a very serious error in his ruling,” he said. “We will assess it the coming days.”
On Dec. 16, 2015, Lopez and two county jail correctional officers, George Ismael and Michael Del Carlo, were accused of providing cellphones and drugs to inmate Dionicio Rafael Lopez Jr., who was also indicted along with Leticia Lopez, Amanda Lopez and Roxanne Ingebretsen, according to prosecutors.
On Nov. 17, the case against Del Carlo was dismissed after Ayoob granted his motion to dismiss over strenuous prosecution objection, according to prosecutors.
Once a write-in candidate for county sheriff, Lopez is also being accused of embezzlement, perjury and election fraud based on allegations he used donations from his campaign for his own personal use and lied about his city of residence, according to prosecutors.
Lopez listed his residence as being in Redwood City but allegedly was living in Newark when he filed to run for sheriff in 2014. He is also being accused of misrepresenting his address on a real estate loan, according to prosecutors.
Lopez will next appear in court Jan. 25 to set a new jury trial date for the embezzlement, perjury and election fraud charges and is out of custody on a $170,000 bail bond, according to prosecutors.
(650) 344-5200 ext. 102
San Mateo County News 
(12) comments
Anna Schuessler Daily Journal staff has this statement wrong–Lopez will next appear in court Jan. 25 to set a new jury trial date for the embezzlement, perjury and election fraud charges and is out of custody on a $170,000 bail bond, according to prosecutors.
Jan. 25, 2018 is to hear the motion for 2nd case remaining charges.
SM Daily Journal , please contact his attorney for clarification.
To correct the San Mateo Daily Journal, former Deputy Juan Pablo Lopez next court hearing is January 25, 2018. I am requesting the newspaper to contact his attorney about this date.
Let’s see if the local media covers Mr. Juan Pablo Lopez ( Former SMC Deputy ) on his next hearings.
I hope the local and national media will follow the rest of this case, I am sure the rest of the phony charges will be dropped.
When will the San Mateo County public/voters going to wake up?
San Mateo County District Attorney’s office is trying to destroy former Deputy Sheriff Juan Lopez.
I hope someone will get this to the national media.
I can only imagine how much money this is causing former Deputy Juan Lopez.
PLEASE HELP GET THIS OUT TO EVERYONE!!!
Let me get this straight. Wagstaffe’s little pal Sheriff Munks and Under-sheriff Carlos Bolanos are caught going into a house of underaged trafficked prostitution in Las Vegas in 2007, for their own recreation. Wagstaffe defends them to the hilt and says they did nothing wrong. He sweeps it under the rug.
But when a clean deputy decides to run against the corruption of the San Mateo Sheriff, Wagstaffe and Munks punish him by cooking up suspect charges that don’t hold up light when examined AND hold a big press conference to announce it? Lopez wasn’t the one caught going into a place with underaged trafficked girls. The fact that someone dared to challenge the corrupt sheriff angered Wagstaffe and Munks. Something is rotten in San Mateo County
Great statements!!!!
research about Mr. Lopez and San Mateo the last 3 years is quite a story.
if the con wrote a letter exonerating Lopez,why was it a case for 3 years?
The District Attorney’s Office withheld the letters from the Grand Jury, and offered a not so truthful representation of what the Jailhouse snitch actually said. To this day there has been ZERO evidence that Sheriff Deputy Juan P. Lopez was connected to the cellphone/s and drugs, and the DA’s Office has always known that fact. Disgusting behavior.
It’s about time, After over 3 years of the District Attorney’s lies and false charges against Former Sheriff Deputy Juan P. Lopez and others a Judge finally got to see what the DA’s office has done. It shouldn’t take over 3 years to present your side of a case. This dismissal makes 4 for 4 defendants charges dismissed.
San Mateo County D.A.’s office has a long list of cases of injustice, for the people who know, lies are not too uncommon.