The Southern California News Group said Selyem hung up on a reporter who reached him by phone. An email message and phone call from The Associated Press was not returned.

District Attorney Mike Ramos said he learned of the comments two weeks ago after other attorneys in the office complained. While individuals have free speech rights, these must be balanced with the need for ethical and unbiased prosecutors, he said.

“There’s a line that you cross that it impacts the work of your office,” Ramos told the AP. “The public has trust in us, and we have to be really careful.”

The district attorney’s office in the county of 2 million people east of Los Angeles is developing a policy on social media use. It already has a policy on what constitutes professional conduct, Ramos said.

District Attorney-elect Jason Anderson told the Register on Friday that Selyem’s comments are “not a reflection of the image I would like to portray of the DA’s office.”

U.S. Rep. Peter Aguilar, a Democrat who represents San Bernardino, tweeted that Selyme should be fired immediately.

“We cannot allow racism and bigotry to have a place in our society, especially not in our government,” he wrote.

Selyem, 50, joined the DA’s office 12 years ago and is the lead prosecutor in the Central Hardcore Gang Unit.

Critics said the posts called into question Selyem’s objectivity and professionalism as a criminal prosecutor.

However, San Bernardino attorney Stephen Levine, who knows Selyem as an online friend and has faced him in court, called Selyem “very disciplined and ethical.”

“I have seen no evidence that his personal beliefs have influenced his professional responsibilities and prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt,” Levine said.

AP