Former Willits police chief files claim against City of Willits
Alexis Blaylock was hired by the City of Willits as the Willits Police Department (WPD) Chief on Aug. 26, 2020. She resigned from the position less than 47 days later. Although the City issued a statement on Oct. 12, 2020, the explanation was vague and community members began to speculate about why Blaylock resigned after less than seven weeks on the job.
According to the press release written by now former City Manager Stephanie Garrabrant-sierra, Blaylock “resigned from her position as Chief of Police for the City of Willits for personal reasons.” Garrabrant-sierra had enthusiastically announced the hiring of Blaylock in August, and stated that in the press release that she was “sad” to announce that Blaylock was leaving so soon. Garrabrantsierra stated specifically in the press release, “The City will not be issuing any further statements on this matter,” and not a peep has been uttered since.
Shortly after her resignation, Blaylock wrote a letter to the Willits community and said that residents had welcomed her “warmly” and she originally “planned to stay long term.” She described her goals of bringing the WPD “up to date in training, technology and staffing in order to provide better service and make the community safer.” She went on to say that she had encountered “roadblocks” from day one, but could not be specific about details because her “professional ethics and standards of confidentiality” prevented her from speaking out.
“Just know that I explored every angle before arriving to the conclusion that I would not be granted the ability to provide you, the people of Willits, the service you all deserve,” wrote Blaylock.
A few community members wrote letters to the City asking for an explanation, while others engaged in lengthy discussions on Facebook. Some people were shocked and dismayed, but many were not surprised that a woman and person of color did not last long at WPD due to an (unspecified) “undercurrent” that may exist in the City.
As one Facebook member commented, and most agreed, “The city owes it to its citizens to give a factual account of the police chief’s departure.” However, a few commenters felt that public speculation was starting rumors and casting negative light on the City. “The public is not entitled to know exactly what went wrong! Maybe nothing went wrong and someone made a choice! Maybe another job came up maybe it wasn’t a fit for her.” Regardless, nearly everyone agreed that Blaylock was more than qualified for the job and “her resume was impressive,” but maybe her ideas were a bit too progressive for Willits. “This county, is either afraid of change or doesn’t want things to change and that’s a shame,” wrote another commenter.
Fast forward to January 2021, when a “claim for damages” filed by Blaylock against the City of Willits appeared as a closed session item on the Jan. 13 City Council agenda. Item number 13a reads, “Conference with Legal Counsel Pursuant to Government Code §54956.9(e)(3) — Anticipated Litigation (One Case — This matter relates to a claim for damages from former Police Chief Alexis Blaylock).”
When asked prior to the meeting for more information about the claim, City attorney Jim Lance said, “I’m sorry but I really can’t comment about this.” When asked after the meeting to report out on the closed session topic, he said, “Alexis Blaylock resigned from her employment, but I can’t comment about the closed session.”
Although there currently is no public information about why Blaylock filed the claim, a general legal explanation could be that some sort of “damages” occured while she was employed in Willits, and she is seeking financial compensation from the City of Willits.