In December 2023 Vallejo Police Department reinstated Jarrett Tonn, the officer responsible for the killing of Sean Monterrosa. In light of this developing news, Michelle Monterrossa spoke to El Tecolote about what the decision means for her family. As they work through their grief and continue to honor their late brother, now more than ever the consequences of police brutality are not far away myths. They are real-world decisions that can cause harm to our communities. Here, Michelle shares her insights and the path forward.
In light of the reinstatement of the police officer who was involved in your brother’s case, can you describe your initial reaction when you learned about the reinstatement?
Our family’s initial reaction to the news that Jarrett Tonn the former officer who killed our brother Sean was going to be reinstated, we were devastated. Families like ours oftentimes expect for the system to do its job but only to be notified that police officers and the unions continue to have the upper hand.
What are your thoughts on the reasons provided for the officer’s reinstatement?
At the end of the day, officers and police unions contract people who will continue to corrupt and make decisions that are in line with the status quo. Jarrett Tonn was found to have committed wrongdoing and in Sean’s case, the chief had fired him for killing him. So when we heard that he was going to be reinstated we were confused as to how this could have happened.
How do you and your family plan to advocate for justice and accountability in your brother’s case moving forward?
Our family has not given up. The system will continue to spit out officers like Jarrett Tonn and in order for us to continue to advocate for justice and accountability, [we] plan on reaching out to the [Department of Justice] Civil Rights Department to intervene. Justice has been disregarded and Sean’s case from the very beginning has been a political game. We need immediate intervention in Vallejo to avoid another tragedy from happening.
What changes or improvements would you like to see in the handling of such cases in the future?
I think that cases need to be treated with urgency and be prioritized rather than to drag cases for over 3+ years. Families impacted by police violence continue to be let down and ignored but let’s remember that our cases are not political opportunities for people to take advantage over for their own political agendas. I think we are at a point where we haven’t seen local DAs or AGs hold any officers accountable and we still need to advocate for independent investigators.