Tag Archives: Vallejo Times-Herald

California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Vallejo CA, Vallejo Times-Herald

Citing pattern of unconstitutional misconduct, Dept. of Justice announces stipulated judgment with Vallejo Police Department

Note from the NorCal ACLU – Solano Chapter, co-led by Kris Oyota Kelley and Vallejo mayoral candidate Andrea Sorce:

This morning, California Attorney General Rob Bonta held a press conference to announce a stipulated judgment (consent decree) with the Vallejo Police Department.

This agreement compels the City of Vallejo to implement long-overdue reforms and establishes an independent court-supervised monitor to ensure progress. It will not solve all of our police accountability issues, but it is a major step in the right direction for public safety in Vallejo.

We appreciate everyone who signed the petition and will keep you updated as our efforts progress. The ACLU NorCal Criminal Justice team will be investing significant resources in Vallejo going forward, and we will continue to push for the remainder of our petition demands.

[Note from BenIndy: There is still a lot of work to do – please sign the petition by clicking this link. ]

Attorney General Bonta Announces Stipulated Judgment with the Vallejo Police Department to Strengthen Accountability, Police Policies and Practices

Click the image to view the document. You will be redirected to the website of the Office of the Attorney General.
Sunday, October 15, 2023
[Images added by BenIndy]

VALLEJO – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced that the California Department of Justice (DOJ) has entered into a stipulated judgment with the city of Vallejo and the Vallejo Police Department (VPD) regarding reforms to VPD’s policies and practices. The stipulated judgment continues and expands upon the reform work started under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the DOJ and VPD. The agreement announced today resolves DOJ’s complaint alleging the VPD engaged in a pattern and practice of unconstitutional conduct. As part of the agreement, the city of Vallejo and VPD will undertake a comprehensive set of actions — to be led by an Oversight and Reform Evaluator — to promote public safety, reduce unlawful uses of force, eliminate racial and identity disparities, strengthen accountability systems, continue to increase support for officers, and protect the statutory and constitutional rights of the people of Vallejo.

“Maintaining trust between our law enforcement and the communities they serve is a foundational part of public safety,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Today’s agreement with the city of Vallejo and its police department is another important step toward correcting injustices, building trust, and enhancing public safety for the people of Vallejo. We cannot afford to be complacent. The reforms laid out in the agreement are needed and necessary to continue healing the relationship between law enforcement and the community. It’s past time the people of Vallejo have a police department that listens and guarantees that their civil rights are protected. My office is committed to staying engaged, working collaboratively with VPD and the city and ensuring a fair, thorough, and transparent process.”

Heather Skinner, Ronell Foster’s mother-in-law, speaks about transparency during a press conference held by the office of lawyer John Burris in front of City Hall in Vallejo. Ronell Foster was killed by VPD in 2018. | Chris Riley / Times-Herald.

“The City of Vallejo is encouraged by the progress made to date by our staff and the Department.  We are optimistic about the continuation of our collaboration with the California Department of Justice and its team in the next phase of this important work,” said Vallejo Mayor Robert McConnell. “We have made significant progress but there is still more to do.  The City Council is unanimously committed to seeing our efforts through to conclusion. It is the goal of the City of Vallejo and the VPD to continue to build on the progress made to date, to strengthen our relationships and advance our efforts to build trust with the community.”

“The Vallejo Police Department is committed to the completion of the remaining original recommendations and the additional recommendations under the new Agreement,” said Vallejo Police Department Interim Chief Jason Ta. “Improvements will be made to new and existing policies and procedures, which we are confident will increase accountability, efficiency, transparency, and community partnerships while at the same time improving relationships with the public and building mutual trust and respect from the community we serve.”

Protesters face off against police officers during a peaceful march over the killing of Sean Monterrosa, the 22-year-old San Francisco man, who was shot and killed by a Vallejo Police officer in 2020. | Chris Riley / Times-Herald.

“This Agreement is a continuation of the reform process Vallejo Police Department started three years ago,” said Vallejo City Manager Michael Malone. “City management and Vallejo Police Department are committed to engaging the community and dedicating the resources needed to ensure this ongoing effort is successful within the terms of our new Agreement.”

“During the past 3 years of the City’s collaborative agreement with the California Department of Justice we have fostered a positive working relationship that has produced significant results,” said Vallejo City Attorney Veronica Nebb. “Our work is not complete and we look forward to continuing our joint efforts with the California Department of Justice for the benefit of the community, the Department and the City.”

On June 5, 2020, DOJ, the city of Vallejo, and VPD entered into a MOU for VPD to institute a comprehensive modernized policing plan that included implementing 45 reform recommendations made by VPD’s expert consultants, as well as additional review from DOJ to expand upon and add any additional recommendations needed to modernize VPD’s current policies and practices, assist with implementation of the recommendations, and independently evaluate VPD’s compliance with the recommendations. The California Department of Justice’s (DOJ) decision to enter into an MOU with VPD to reform its policing came in light of several high-profile uses of force, including a number of officer-involved shootings.

Alicia Saddler speaks outside City Hall at a rally addressing police shootings in Vallejo, Calif., on Feb. 28, 2019. Saddler’s brother, Angel Ramos, was killed by VPD in 2017. | Brock Stoneham / NBC News.

When the MOU expired on June 5, 2023, VPD had achieved substantial compliance with 20 out of the 45 agreed-upon recommendations. During the review of VPD’s systems and practices under the MOU, DOJ concluded that VPD failed to uniformly and adequately enforce the law, based in part, because of defective or inadequate policies, practices, and procedures. DOJ is currently seeking a judgment with court oversight requiring VPD and the city of Vallejo to implement the remaining reforms, and to implement additional reforms addressing civilian complaints, bias-free policing, stops, searches, seizures and arrest, and ongoing oversight of these reforms.

The parties have agreed on a comprehensive five-year plan to address the numerous areas that need improvement and modernization to bring VPD into alignment with contemporary best practices and ensure constitutional policing. VPD will implement the remaining recommendations that have not been completed from the 45 Recommendations contained in the May 2020 report titled “Vallejo Police Department: Independent Assessment of Operations, Internal Review Systems and Agency Culture” (“2020 Recommendations”). Additionally, under the agreement VPD will implement additional recommendations, including to:

  • Address unreasonable force by holding officers and supervisors accountable for not identifying, adequately investigating, or addressing force that is unreasonable or otherwise contrary to VPD policy; and refer uses of force that may violate law or VPD’s use of force policy to their Professional Standards Division (internal affairs) for further investigation or review.
  • Enhance, promote, and strengthen partnerships within the community, to continue engaging constructively with the community to ensure collaborative problem-solving and bias-free policing, and to increase transparency and community confidence in VPD.
  • Utilize its Chief’s Advisory Board (CAB) and the Police Oversight and Accountability Commission (POAC), to continue to develop and amend significant policies that impact the community, including to its use of force policies, community-policing strategy and policies, bias-free policing policies, and civilian complaint policies.
  • Develop a policy that defines and limits the use of pretextual stops.
  • Enhance and revise training with respect to investigatory stops, reiterating that race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, or sexual orientation are not to be used as a factor in establishing reasonable suspicion or probable cause, except as part of actual and credible descriptions of a specific suspect.
  • Prohibit officers from conducting consent searches during consensual encounters. Officers may not conduct a consent search after detaining a subject unless an officer reasonably suspects that the subject has contraband or evidence related to that detention, and the consent must be documented on body camera footage or a signed consent form.
  • Ensure stops, searches, and seizures comply with the law, as part of an effective overall crime prevention strategy that does not contribute to counterproductive tension with the community.
  • Commit to providing bias-free services and enforcing laws in a way that is professional, nondiscriminatory, fair, and equitable.
  • Work with the Evaluator to develop a policy and protocol for responding to calls involving a person in mental health crisis or suffering from a mental health disability. The policy and protocol will include utilizing professional civilian staff, who are trained professionals in responding to mental health crises, to respond when appropriate and available.
  • Develop and implement policies, guidelines, and training to ensure all supervisors and managers:
    • Exercise appropriate supervisory oversight
    • Conduct objective and impartial investigations
    • Are held accountable for meeting agency standards and expectations
    • Engage with and listen to community feedback
    • Incorporate community feedback when able and appropriate
    • Develop and evaluate policing strategies and tactics reflective of contemporary best community policing practices
  • Conduct an ongoing audit of incidents where an officer points a firearm at a member of the public or brandishes a firearm in the presence of a member of the public to ensure that its officers are not drawing a firearm solely based on the mere existence of a potential risk (e.g., public contact, pedestrian/traffic stop).

A copy of the stipulated judgment is available here, and a copy of the complaint is available here.

Andrea Sorce, Vallejo CA, Vallejo Times-Herald

Accountability advocate Andrea Sorce announces run for Vallejo mayor

Andrea Sorce, an economics professor at Diablo Valley College, who chairs Vallejo’s Surveillance Advisory Board and co-founded and co-led ACLU – Northern California’s Solano County chapter, is running for mayor to bring  accountability, transparency, and economic growth to Vallejo. | Image by Askari Sowonde.

Vallejo Times-Herald, by Daniel Egitto, October 4, 2023 

The chair of Vallejo’s Surveillance Advisory Board and co-founder of the local American Civil Liberties Union chapter is running for mayor, promising shakeups in the city’s “status quo.”

Andrea Sorce, a frequent attendee at Vallejo City Council meetings and outspoken critic of the Vallejo Police Department, is running on a platform of transparency, accountability and economic growth. She joins Realtor and former Vice Mayor Pippin Dew in the race to fill the seat of Mayor Robert McConnell when his term ends in January 2025.

Vallejo mayoral candidate Andrea Sorce reviews her notes prior to speaking at the May 10, 2023 meeting of the Vallejo City Council, as Chief Assistant City Attorney Randy Risner looks on. | Geoffrey King for Open Vallejo.

“I think for me, it was seeing the community so frustrated with the status quo and seeing what I feel is a lack of leadership,” Sorce said. “I feel like Vallejo deserves better leadership, and the community for years now has just lost trust in City Hall.”

Sorce took aim at what she sees as “a culture of covering up wrongdoing.” She wants to see “a trusted independent investigator” look into former police Chief Shawny Williams’ resignation last November, as well as the unhoused people who died on the city’s watch in Project RoomKey.

“I think when you have a city where people that do the right thing are punished and people that do the wrong thing are promoted, that is going to deter good people from wanting to work for the city,” she said.

Sorce, an economics professor at Diablo Valley College who previously served in the Peace Corps, said she also wants to see more tax dollars “going to the right problems” in Vallejo – issues like the city’s poor roads and insufficient housing. And she wants to help develop more concrete plans for improving the city’s economy.

The candidate accused local leaders of sometimes taking an “us-versus-them” approach to their own community, deterring people from getting more involved in local politics through policies such as limiting physical access to Vallejo City Hall. Moreover, she blamed the city’s current police officer shortage on a “lack of accountability for wrongdoing, and a lack of leadership, and a lack of support for the folks that have tried to take it on.”

The Vallejo Police Officers’ Association has said the recent wave of resignations results from “the city council’s continued disrespect for our officers and the work that we do.” But Sorce argued that the police department’s culture is deterring many officers from wanting to work there.

“The criticism has never been anti-police. It’s been anti-corruption,” she said, referring to her own track record of fiery public comments.

Sorce believes Vallejo has “made some real progress” in recent elections. She said the city has a long way to go, but she has faith that it can get there.

“It’s doable,” she said. “It’s not easy, but it’s doable. I think there’s real cause for optimism.”

For more information about Andrea, visit the Vallejo Sun’s tagged collection of posts naming or quoting her.

While you’re there, consider supporting independent news in Solano County with a subscription. Per the BenIndy’s Editor Emeritus Roger Straw, “the Vallejo Sun is celebrating it’s second anniversary, and has earned my respect with excellent in-depth reporting on police, local government, schools, arts, and local events.  Recently, I re-subscribed with a voluntary increase in my annual renewal amount. You can subscribe here.”

You can also read more about Andrea at Open Vallejo. Open Vallejo is an “award-winning, independent, non-partisan, nonprofit newsroom serving the public interest.” It’s tireless work unburdening a city from a history of “police violence, corruption, and neglect” is truly phenomenal and also worthy of your support.

News deserts, Print journalism, Vallejo Sun

The Vallejo Sun – Benicia residents should think about subscribing!

Local journalism is so important…

By Roger Straw, September 27, 2023

The Vallejo Sun is celebrating it’s second anniversary, and has earned my respect with excellent in-depth reporting on police, local government, schools, arts, and local events.  Recently, I re-subscribed with a voluntary increase in my annual renewal amount. You can subscribe here.

Understand – I’m a longtime supporter of our own small town press, the Benicia Herald, and our next door neighbor paper, the Vallejo Times-Herald. And gosh, wouldn’t ya know, I read the Benicia Independent, yes! I hope you do, too, because local journalism isn’t on firm ground anywhere in the U.S. these days. We need a variety of perspectives – and no one source can cover it all.

Here’s how Scott Morris of the Vallejo Sun puts it on the occasion of the Sun’s second anniversary:

Scott Morris, co-founder of the Vallejo Sun. Scott is a journalist who covers policing, protest, civil rights and far-right extremism. His work has been published in ProPublica, the Appeal and Oaklandside.

Dear readers,

I’m writing because the Vallejo Sun just passed a major milestone: Our second year anniversary. While this is cause for celebration, it remains to be seen whether we can keep going for another year. So I’m also asking for your help.

We founded the Vallejo Sun in 2021 because we saw a need for in-depth reporting about local government, policing, and extremist movements in the region. In 2022, we expanded to cover Vallejo’s rich arts and culture.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our in-depth reporting on police, local government, schools and arts, and have found our extensive event listings useful. We think it’s important to bring you the best information available. But we can’t do it without your help.

This year we’ve overcome some challenges. Our founding member John Glidden departed for a new role with the county. Upheaval at social media companies has made it harder for news publishers to reach consumers.

But we remain committed to bringing you the news and added six new contributors in the last year. These new voices have expanded our breadth of coverage and brought you even more of the in-depth news you’ve come to expect from us.

For the first time, you can make a tax deductible contribution to the Vallejo Sun through our fiscal sponsor, the Alternative Newsweekly Foundation. Your contribution means more work for local journalists and more thought-provoking, impactful stories.

Click here to make a tax deductible donation to the Vallejo Sun.

Click here to become a paid subscriber to the Vallejo Sun.

Assault weapons, Gun violence

Jack F.K. Bungart: Pain — and anger — for my hometown, Highland Park

With permission, by Vallejo Times-Herald Editor, Jack F.K. Bungart, July 9, 2022

“Son take a good look around … This is your hometown.”
— Bruce Springsteen

My hometown is — early cliché alert — a part of me, as big a chunk of who I am and what I became as any DNA strand, any online genealogy search.

I left my hometown some 50 years ago, forced out, feet dragging — collateral damage to my dad’s burgeoning job status.

But my hometown never left me.

I go back every time a journalist’s salary allows and Wrigley Field beckons, always staying at the same hotel near the same hallowed grounds of my insanely blessed youth.

I am Highland Park, Illinois. I always will be.

Highland Park is my hometown.

Yes, that Highland Park.

There is something inherently shallow about making any news story, much less a tragedy like what took place on the Fourth of July, about yourself. Even a hint of it can smack of preening narcissism. A seasoned, highly trained professional doesn’t do that.

And neither do I.

At least not until my town, rolling in privilege and graced with the kind of classic Midwest charm that called out to the cameras of John Hughes, was torn asunder, right at the intersection of evil and tragic.

I can’t possibly imagine the soul-crushing anguish of those innocent parade-goers — from the lives lost to the ones left with wounded psyches as they grieve and attempt to make sense of the senseless.

But that was our Fourth of July Parade, the one I went to so many times, that this pile of filth in makeup desecrated. That was my street, Central Avenue, those bullet casings rattled off of. Right or wrong, it feels distinctly personal. Those were my people whose lives were ruined, on a classic American day, in what has, to our great national shame, become a uniquely American tradition.

Do the lost lives of my town matter more? More than, say, those beautiful souls in Uvalde, Texas — what was it, five minutes ago? They, too, were victims of a madman, another war-time killing machine, but with a historic level of law enforcement incompetence that would be darkly comedic if it wasn’t so sickeningly horrific.

Of course not. But there is a reason we brag about people from our old stomping grounds who made it big — I’m looking at you Rachel Brosnahan, source of my favorite TV character ever, Midge Maisel.

And there is a reason my jaw dropped, my heart sank and my gag reflex cranked into overdrive on the Fourth of July. That reason, that connection, that longtime love affair is why the crawl at the bottom of the screen on a holiday Monday was such a gut punch, as breathtaking as it was tear-inducing.

So no, this isn’t about me.

It’s about Irina and Kevin McCarthy, who saved their now-orphaned son with unimaginable courage and heroism, just down the street from where my U.S. Marine father started me on the path to manhood with a work ethic and strict allowance that never allowed for the spoiled brat-like behavior my opulent surroundings teased us all with.

It’s about Nicolas Toledo, who lost his life just a three-minute walk down the street from my childhood home, whose owners still kindly put up with my occasional, nostalgia-laced drop-ins.

It’s about Jacquelyn Sundheim, who had her life of laughter and generosity blown away just across the street from where I parked my bike so many times for yet another run on baseball cards.

It’s about Stephen Straus, killed just down the street from our iconic — at least it was for us — movie theater (as seen in “Risky Business”), where I fell in love for the first time. Her name was Ann-Margret, and suddenly girls weren’t so gross after all.

It’s about Katherine Goldstein, taken away just down the street from our supposedly “secret” passageway down the stairs next to the park and to the biggest body of water I could imagine — Lake Michigan.

It’s about Eduardo Uvaldo, mowed down blocks away from the bedroom where I would carefully set out my clothes at night for the next day’s trip to the greatest place on Earth — Wrigley Field.

It’s about Cooper Roberts, who deserved so much better from the grownups in Washington, D.C., and the authorities who missed the signs to stop a lunatic in their midst. No farther than a third baseman’s throw to first from where we religiously played baseball, all day, every day, until we couldn’t — and then cranking it back up when we could — a beautiful 8-year-old boy suffered bullet wounds that leave him unable to walk, much less run around the bases, today.

And finally, it’s about damn time … we do something — please, anything — about this mindless carnage. I was an 8-year-old boy when the New York Mets ripped my heart out in the summer of 1969. But I wasn’t shot by an assault-style rifle that nobody outside of the United States military has any business owning.

Most of us not named Marjorie Taylor-What’s Her Face — the wretchedly vile, prodigiously stupid conspiracy queen freak who all too predictably oozed out the poison of this possibly being a “false-flag operation” — know perfectly well what needs to be done.

A ban on all — every last one of them — assault-style, rapid-fire rifles, made specifically for wartime obliteration, to not just take out as many lives as quickly as possible, but to eviscerate the human body as efficiently as possible.

Allowing these weapons into the general populace — much less the hands of confused, teenage zombies — makes for uniquely cruel, obscenely abhorrent public policy.

It’s the kind of disgrace that perhaps doesn’t happen in a country with a congress full of actual public servants, not gutless cowards, supplicant careerists, and eager NRA lapdogs who left their conscience at the House coat check.

And no, that’s not “playing politics.” It’s common sense for the common good. Doing the opposite, to keep your seat of power and your nice parking spot? That’s playing politics.

This simply did not have to happen. It sure as hell didn’t have to happen in my damn town, or any damn town, anywhere. Not on the Fourth of July.

Let’s all take it personally. The alternative — becoming numb to shooting after shooting — is unacceptable.

My precious hometown is a crime scene today, surrounded by yellow police tape and soul-crushing grief.

It could be your town next.

— Jack F.K. Bungart is the Editor of the Vallejo Times-Herald and the Vacaville Reporter.