Vallejo officials appoint interim police chief to lead troubled department
After what the city of Vallejo called a "robust national search," officials have named interim police chief Jason Ta as the new permanent chief.
The Vallejo city manager has full faith in Ta, but some critics are expressing doubts about the choice.
Ta will formally take over a department where officer conduct has made international headlines, most notably with the high-profile police shootings of Willie McCoy and Sean Monterrosa. Both of those incidents happened before Ta joined the department.
The killings resulted in firings, multi-million dollar settlements and oversight from the state's attorney general. The department is also dealing with a staffing shortage that prompted calls for the governor to intervene.
Ta has served as the interim chief for two years since Shawny Williams resigned in November of 2022. He will inherit an agency juggling a staffing crisis, a high homicide rate and scrutiny from the public over police use of force and misconduct. The department has been under state oversight since 2020.
Vallejo PD is in the process of implementing sweeping reforms to combat excessive force and racial bias.
Ta has a long history in law enforcement. He worked at the San Jose Police Department for 27 years before coming to Vallejo as a deputy chief in 2021.
Vallejo City Manager Andrew Murray -- who appointed Ta -- says during his time as interim chief, Ta has stabilized staffing levels, adopted crime reduction technologies, improved relationships with the community and shepherded the completion of police reforms required by the state.
But not everyone thinks promoting Ta was the right thing to do. Ben Nisenbaum, an attorney who has handled cases involving alleged police brutality in Vallejo, said he doubts Ta will make police reform a priority.
"Has he done anything since he's been there that would demonstrate that he is really committed to changing the culture of the department to one of accountability? One of discipline?" Nisenbaum asked. "You know, I haven't seen it."
Ta is set to take over in his permanent role next month. Last February, Open Vallejo reported that Ta had accepted the job as police chief in Salinas, but the following week the city re-opened its search.
Salinas's interim city manager at the time said that he wanted to broaden the search, and never publicly confirmed Ta was the original choice. Residents had complained about a lack of transparency in the selection process.
