Open Vallejo is a finalist for two major journalism awards for its investigation into an in-custody death that Vallejo police are still fighting to hide.
The Association of Alternative Media named Open Vallejo as a finalist for the 2025 David Carr Award for Investigative Reporting, alongside the Washington City Paper, Mississippi Free Press and San Francisco Public Press. In addition, the Sacramento Press Club selected this newsroom as a finalist for the 2025 Golden State Journalism Award for Social Justice and Equity Reporting, alongside The Sacramento Bee and a partnership between KQED, CalMatters and the Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley.
Open Vallejo is being honored for its years-long examination of the in-custody death of Darryl Dean Mefferd. In 2016, a Vallejo police officer detained the 49-year-old Vallejo native outside a local emergency room, where he had sought medical attention related to alcohol withdrawal. Although local officials ruled the death an accidental drug overdose, Open Vallejo’s investigation found that Mefferd died after being held prone with his hands cuffed behind his back for more than 10 minutes.
For decades, law enforcement agencies have warned against the use of prone restraint due to its high risk of positional asphyxia. Three independent forensic experts told this newsroom they would have ruled Mefferd’s death a homicide.
The city of Vallejo is actively fighting the production of records in his case. Records obtained from other agencies confirmed the details of Open Vallejo’s 2024 investigation. They also revealed Mefferd’s last words: “I can’t breathe. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I can’t breathe.”
