Open Vallejo

Investigative Reporting in the public interest: Open Vallejo published groundbreaking, original stories in 2024 that have generated major impact in Vallejo and in Solano County as a whole, earning our website approximately 49,576 unique views per month.In 2024, Open Vallejo produced several investigative reports highlighting critical issues within the city. In June 2024, Open Vallejo published The Secret Death of Darryl Dean Mefferd, an investigative report that revealed both the fact and circumstances surrounding Mefferds 2016 death in Vallejo police custody. The article revealed that officials classified Mefferds death as an accidental drug overdose, despite evidence that it was a homicide, allowing them to keep it hidden from public scrutiny for years. Through extensive research and expert interviews, the report challenged the official narrative and highlighted systemic issues within local law enforcement agencies.Another significant published in 2024, As Vallejo police force shrinks, 911 response times soar, focused on the Vallejo Police Departments shrinking workforce and its impact on emergency response times. The investigation revealed that as the number of sworn officers decreased, 911 response times increased dramatically, leaving residents vulnerable during emergencies. Factors contributing to the staffing shortage included publicized scandals, leadership changes, and challenges in implementing reforms. The report underscored the urgent need for strategic solutions to bolster the police force and ensure public safety. In April of 2024, Open Vallejo published Vallejo officers intervene after detective stopped by Cotati police, which revealed how a detective with a prior DUI conviction was contacted by police in a city 45 minutes away, then received a courtesy ride home from colleagues. The following month, this newsroom demonstrated how the lack of accountability was part of a pattern in Vallejo when it published, SWAT officer among Vallejo police with DUI conviction. This investigation revealed that an officer who was actively on criminal probation for a recent DUI conviction was also on the departments SWAT team, and that at least four other current and former police employees had also been convicted of DUIs in the past decade.Also in 2024, Open Vallejos ongoing investigative reporting provided the factual basis for a complaint, filed by a third party, that asked the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) to decertify nine current and former Vallejo officers. The state agency subsequently pledged to investigate the allegations in the complaint at a public meeting. In February 2024 Open Vallejo published, Vallejo seeks to keep evidence destruction probe secret. This investigation uncovered the citys efforts to keep an investigation into the illegal destruction of evidence in multiple police shootings confidential. Assistant City Attorney Katelyn Knight, who had authorized the evidence purge, cited attorney-client privilege and confidentiality laws to withhold the investigative report. This lack of transparency prompted concerns about accountability and the citys commitment to addressing misconduct within its police department. Public records requests and litigationOpen Vallejo filed numerous public records requests in 2024, contributing to new public records being released. After analyzing thousands of pages of documents relating to police violence and misconduct, and even after a final ruling in our nonprofit newsrooms favor, we are still in ongoing litigation with the City of Vallejo to enforce the disclosure of public records related to shootings and great bodily injury by Vallejo police. Both the litigation and the analysis have generated new public record releases, which allowed our newsroom to produce new reporting that has informed the public both in Vallejo and across the country. We are also prosecuting a separate public records lawsuit against the Solano County District Attorney and Solano County Sheriff for similar records, which has similarly resulted in the disclosure of records that had remained out of public view for years.Freedom of the PressOpen Vallejo has been an early and active partner in the Protecting Journalists Pro Bono Program, including through the litigation referenced above.