S.F. employee sues after losing job over salacious ‘reply-all’ email

He alleges DA and others made "malicious and humiliating" statements about him to the press.

A former employee is suing after losing his job in the San Francisco district attorney’s office because of a salacious “reply-all” email.

Jovan Thomas on Friday, July 19, filed a complaint in Superior Court against the city of San Francisco, DA Brooke Jenkins, her office and other employees; his allegations include invasion of privacy, defamation and infliction of severe emotional distress, according to a document posted by Courthouse News Service.

Thomas, 56, lost his job as a victim advocate on Jan. 26, 2024, the day he responded to an officewide email from Jenkins with the statement “what color panties you have on.”

In the complaint, Thomas said he had been texting with a longtime friend whose father had just died and intended to cheer him up with the message, described as a “goofy, playful” joke between two straight men. As he went to hit “send,” he said, Jenkins’ email popped up — and Thomas accidentally sent the panties message as a “reply-all” response.

Thomas said he immediately sent a second message apologizing for his mistake. Before the workday ended, he was told his employment was over, but he said the action was characterized as a layoff rather than termination for cause.

In the following days, the incident made headlines in the Bay Area and beyond, with most news outlets calling the dismissal a firing. A spokesman for the DA’s office issued a statement decrying what he termed Thomas’ “misogynistic behavior.”

Thomas’ complaint alleges Jenkins and other office employees contacted the press and made “false, fraudulent, malicious and humiliating statements” about him. A week later, he said, he was informed his termination was for cause.

Thomas is seeking a jury trial and requesting compensatory and punitive damages.