San Diego Unified School Police Chief Contreras retires

The police chief of the San Diego Unified School District is retiring after just two years on the job, officials announced Friday, months after allegations surfaced that he sexually harassed a female officer, discriminated against others and allowed labor law violations.

In December, 11 officers – about a third of the small department – sued Police Chief Alfonso Contreras and the district, claiming he and other supervisors friendly to him had discriminated against them for years based on their race, disability, gender and sexual orientation.

The lawsuit also alleges that Contreras sexually harassed a police officer years ago.

Contreras, who has worked for the department for more than 30 years, has been on leave since January, a district spokesman said. Most of the allegations were first made public in August of last year.

“The district would like to thank Chief Contreras for all of his efforts and contributions over the past 32 years to provide a safe learning environment for our students, staff and community,” Acting Police Chief Donald Braun wrote in a memo to school police on Friday. “He has been a loyal steward of the district and we appreciate his hard work. We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.”

Contreras did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The officers who filed the lawsuit attributed the harassment and abuse to a clique within the department centered around Contreras and investigator Jenifer Gruner. The plaintiffs say the two have been in a relationship for decades, creating a conflict of interest in the department and special privileges for Gruner.

The plaintiffs said members of the clique – which also includes Captain Ivan Picazo, Captain David Landman and Sergeant Robert Bonilla – verbally abused officers, mocked them for their medical conditions, made homophobic and racist remarks and denied them training, overtime pay and promotion opportunities. They also alleged Gruner committed time card fraud with the knowledge of her supervisor.

In addition to Contreras, Gruner and the school police, Superintendent Lamont Jackson is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit alleges that Jackson retaliated against one of the plaintiff police officers by intimidating his girlfriend, a teacher in the district. The lawsuit alleges that Jackson walked into her classroom, watched her teach, and gave her an unwanted hug, even though they had never met before.

For unknown reasons, Jackson is under internal investigation. It is unclear whether the allegations in the lawsuit are related to this.

Jackson did not respond to requests for comment.

Neither the plaintiffs’ attorney nor the head of the school police union, who is one of the plaintiffs, could be immediately reached for comment.

It is unclear whether the district has completed its investigation into the police allegations.

The next court date for the lawsuit, a case management conference, is not scheduled until November 2025.