Place Name: First Place Contestant Name: Capital & Main Entry Title: A Drunk Mechanic, Shackled Immigrants, a Crash Landing: The Dangers of ICE Flights Entry Credit: Angelika Albaladejo Judge Comment: This is an impactful, thorough investigation of ICE charter flight practices. Any one of its many examples would have been enough to ground an excellent story; the fact that there are so many speaks to the reporter's diligence and the value placed on making this story count — which it appears it did, garnering legislative attention.
Place Name: Second Place Contestant Name: California Health Report Entry Title: Water contamination in the Central Valley Entry Credit: Claudia Boyd Barrett Judge Comment: A beautifully written and photographed story that uncovers an all-too-common struggle, but one that is exacerbated for non-English speakers. The investigation comes at a timely moment, presenting readers with the context around potential solutions rather than simply pointing out a problem. Bravo.
Place Name: Third Place Contestant Name: California Health Report Entry Title: Some Kids in Long-Term Care Facilities Didn’t See Parents for More Than a Year Entry Credit: CLAUDIA BOYD BARRETT Judge Comment: It was tough to put one of Claudia's stories ahead of the other. Both are excellently reported and highlight underreported problems. This one struck me as a particularly egregious oversight during a pandemic's worth of egregious oversight; I only would have liked to see the extremely well-told personal stories paired with more proactive measures for the future.
Place Name: Fourth Place Contestant Name: ChicoSol Entry Title: Previously hidden documents show how a pair of police killings really happened Entry Credit: Dave Waddell Judge Comment: Critical accountability journalism for local law enforcement.
Place Name: Fifth Place Contestant Name: A News Cafe Entry Title: RPD Investigator Faces Criminal Trial After Allegedly Using State Police Database to Harass Male Rival Entry Credit: R.V. Scheide Judge Comment: Critical accountability journalism for local law enforcement.
