San Jose got off to a rough start in 2011, following the triple murder in the Mexicali Club. It was the first triple homicide the city has had in the past five years, and police are reluctant to provide any information about what may have happened.

“This case is very complicated, with lots of witnesses and lots of chaos. Information is coming in very slowly,” says SJPD Spokesman Sgt. Ronnie Lopez. Even the identities of the victims has yet to be released, because, as Officer Jose Garcia explains, “These deceased individuals are from out of the country. They are foreigners, so we are trying to locate their family members, next-of-kin to make notifications.”

One effect that the homicide might have is speeding up the process of selecting a new police chief to replace acting chief Christopher Moore, who took over the post made available when Rob Davis retired this past summer. According to sources, some 30 applicants applied for the job, and the list has since been narrowed down to ten. A final decision could come as early as February.

That is not enough for the Coalition for Justice and Accountability, which wants the city to publicize the identities of the candidates before any decision is made so that it can weigh in on the decision. Activist Raj Jayadev of Silicon Valley Debug wants the selection process to be as open as possible, too. City leaders responded by saying that they have been holding public meetings for the community, but publicizing the names of the contenders is impossible. “Many times, they have reasons that they don’t want their names known as someone who is searching for a new job,” Mayor Chuck Reed said. “We have to respect that.” Still, the city is working as quickly as it can to find someone to take the reins, possibly in February.
Read More at The Mercury News.
Read More at ABC 7.