Brian Howey, author at Open Vallejo

An overhead view taken from a drone shows a Black man being placed against a police SUV as he is arrested during daytime.

Vallejo police to weaken drone policy amid potential violations

by Brian Howey April 21, 2022October 17, 2024

Vallejo Police Chief Shawny Williams is sworn into office under the gaze of a city surveillance camera on Nov. 12, 2019. A BuzzFeed News investigation found that Vallejo was one of more than 1,800 public entities to use a facial recognition technology so powerful, it is the subject of numerous lawsuits and several government probes. A Vallejo police spokesperson said the department’s command staff were unaware of its use prior to being contacted for comment by Open Vallejo.

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Vallejo police secretly tested ‘dystopian’ facial recognition tool

by Brian Howey April 13, 2021October 27, 2023

A photograph depicting the facade of the University of Southern California's Annenberg Hall

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Open Vallejo wins national journalism honor for exposing secret police ritual

by Brian Howey February 10, 2021October 27, 2023