A former California Highway Patrol officer has been charged with stalking the girlfriend of a former boyfriend and other felonies, according to a complaint filed in Napa County Superior Court.
Emily Marie
Seronello, 31, of Napa, is also charged with dissuading a witness from going to
authorities, illegal possession of ammunition, impersonating someone else on
the Internet, disobeying a court restraining order and other charges, according
to the complaint filed Monday in Superior Court.
Seronello appeared
in court Tuesday, but did not enter a plea. Napa County Superior Court Judge
Mark Boessenecker scheduled the next hearing for Aug. 24, according to court
documents.
In the meantime,
Seronello remains free on $50,000 bail, according to court records.
Seronello, who was
a CHP officer assigned to the Napa unit on Golden Gate Drive, had been ordered
in January to stay away from her former boyfriend, a Napa resident, according
to court records. Commissioner Michael Williams also ordered Seronello to
possess a firearm only in connection with her official duties, according to
court records.
But an
investigation found that Seronello allegedly sent hundreds of harassing text
messages while concealing her identity to her former boyfriend and possessed
two firearms and ammunition in violation of the restraining order, according to
court records.
Seronello is no
longer a CHP officer, CHP representatives said Wednesday.
“As of May 2012
she’s no longer employed by the department,” CHP spokeswoman Fran Clader said.
“We take
allegations of misconduct by any of our employees very seriously,” said Clader,
who noted that the CHP had conducted the criminal investigation.
Seronello entered
the CHP Academy in May 2005 and graduated in November 2005, Clader said.
In October, the
courts ordered Seronello to stay away from her boyfriend after the Napa County
district attorney’s office filed misdemeanor charges against her for allegedly
entering her boyfriend’s house after she moved out, according to court
documents.
In April, the
district attorney’s office filed a motion to terminate a misdemeanor diversion
program after she allegedly contacted the former boyfriend, a violation of the
court order