Noreen Salinas deserves the truth

On her own: Noreen Salinas, center, at a vigil calling for an investigation into the death of her father, Steve Salinas

June 20, 2007
Raj Jayadev - Metro Active, San Jose

Noreen Salinas is a girl after my own heart ...

"NOREEN SALINAS has taken pictures from every possible angle outside room 119 at the Vagabond Inn. The 29–year–old Salinas has traced the pathway from the parking lot, and has measured the distance from the room to the manager's desk in the next building. It's become her life's focus since her father, Steve Salinas, was tased to death in room 119, while naked and unarmed, by the San Jose Police Department on May 25. Weeks later, having received no substantive information from the SJPD as to why her father is dead, Salinas is trying to get answers for herself. She calls it "putting my cop hat on." Noreen Salinas is hoping the City Council supports the recommendation of mandatory investigation and IPA review. But she is certainly not waiting with bated breath, as she continues to press the SJPD for information. She has repeatedly asked for the police report, and is told she will be able to see it in a few weeks. She has also called for an investigation by the district attorney's office. On the evening of June 8, in front of the district attorney's office, Salinas, supported by the Coalition for Justice and Accountability, a group formed after the death of Cau Buch Tran, held a vigil for her father. "My father was a good, loving man," she told the crowd. "I want to know exactly why the police did what they did, and I want them to be held responsible for their actions.""