American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California v. Vallejo Police Department (Police misconduct)

The ACLU of Northern California has filed a lawsuit to compel the city of Vallejo to release public records that contain information about officers in the Vallejo Police Department who bent their badges after on-duty shootings, allegedly as a badge of honor.  

The ACLU is seeking a 150-page report produced by former Sonoma County Sheriff Rob Giordano who was hired to conduct an independent investigation after the badge bending practice became public two years ago.

Although the report was completed in 2021, the city of Vallejo has refused to release it. City officials claim that the report is a police personnel record and therefore exempt from California public records laws. 

The ACLU lawsuit argues that the report is not a personnel record. And if it were, it would still have to be made available to the public because it involves the use of deadly force by police officers. 

The ACLU petition was filed in Solano Superior Court. It details Vallejo PD's long history of shooting and killing people, a disproportionate number of whom are People of Color. 

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ACLU sues Valleo for Badge-Bending Records, Nov. 23, 2022