The Grand Jury’s sensational new report says what every well-informed Stockton citizen has known for years: The 209 Times is a scourge of lies and bullying that is hurting city government.
What is worse, according to “City of Stockton: Crisis in Government,” an 18-page report from the 2023-24 San Joaquin County Civil Grand Jury, unnamed but easily identifiable “members of the City Council have enabled (the 209 Times) to continue a campaign of harassment.”
“Harassed, Threatened, Coerced, Bullied, Afraid (boldface theirs): These are words used by witnesses to describe the atmosphere in Stockton City Hall,” the report says.
“The alleged sources of that fear were created by individuals associated with the 209 Times,” the report says, by posting hatchet jobs, firing off barrages of accusatory and demeaning emails, and making uncivil public comments which “have left city staff and elected officials continuously intimidated.”
The two main “individuals” at the 209 Times are its founder and mudslinger-in-chief Motecuzoma Sanchez, and smear artist Frank Gayaldo. They pose as journalists — and hide behind the First Amendment — but in reality they are underhanded political operatives. One dismissed the Grand Jury report as an attack by the “cabal” running Stockton.
Sanchez owns two political consultancies: Tecuani LLC and Tlatoani Consulting. Politicians unethical or timid enough to hire these firms get favorable stories in the 209 Times. They can virtually shoot somebody in Hunter Square and the Times’ “journalists” won’t utter a peep.
But the 209 Times will attack its clients’ rivals. Or anyone seen as standing in the way of their goal: majorities on government boards, access to government money, or high-paying government jobs.
Money. Power. Prestige.
A procession of city leaders and employees filed through the Grand Jury to complain about these hacks.
“If they did not agree with and/or support the positions pushed by this SMP (social media platform) then they would be vilified and unfairly attacked in posts on that outlet,” the report says.
By “unfairly attacked,” the Grand Jury means Sanchez, Gayaldo & Co. will distort the truth or lie outright about people they can’t push around.
“In their posts, there is no evidence of the validity of the information stated,’ the report says, using formal language in lieu of the word “bullshit.” “The information posted is presented in a slanted and/or politically biased way to create perceived ‘facts.’”
Unelected 209 associates swagger into Council meetings and, “demand what they want done by the Council and City Staff,” the report says. “These personal accusations and demands are then posted on their social media platforms but are represented as a public position and not the specific views of the SMP.”
This is more than just false reporting, the Grand Jury alleges; it is a violation of the 1974 Political Reform Act, which is enforced — or is supposed to be enforced — by the Fair Political Practices Commission.
“Stating and supporting political views and then advertising via social media as representing a public position violates the FPPC” (which) “requires that the names of persons or organizations … sponsoring information be posted on the advertisement/posts so the reader would be informed who is responsible for publishing the information.”
In other words, if Joe Blow Candidate pays the 209 Times to attack Jane Doe Rival, the law regulating campaign ethics says Mr. Blow must put his name on the “story” so voters can consider the source.
The 209 Times ignores this law, the report alleges.
The report also touches on politicians who allegedly pay the 209 Times so it doesn’t attack them, a sort of political protection racket: “To avoid the threat of public ridicule, what is not published can be traded for something of value,” the report says.
It also implies that certain Council members are just as bad as the 209 Times hacks for being in league with them.
“Members of the Stockton City Council have enabled this SMP to continue a campaign of harassment through their continued association with and appointment of their associates to City Boards and Commissions,” the report says.
No mistaking who the Grand Jury means there: Mayor Kevin Lincoln and Councilmember Michele Padilla.
Lincoln is running for Congress. The 209 Times has become a millstone around his neck. How happy his donors must be that he’s in bed with shady characters denounced by a Grand Jury for tormenting public servants and degrading Stockton city government.
The Grand Jury also noted in a related finding, “Those appointed to work in the Mayor’s Office are not bound by the same employment rules as other city staff and therefore are not held to the same standards as city employees.”
The Grand Jury did not elaborate on this finding that Lincoln runs a loose ship. It should.
Padilla is simply the stoogiest stooge of the 209 Times. When taking her Council seat, she thanked her “management team” of Sanchez and Gayaldo.
So get this: “Political consultants are often compensated but compensation is not just limited to money,” the report says. “A filed FPPC Form 460 showed loans from a political consultant in a campaign for a seat on the Stockton City Council. After being elected, this individual then tried to appoint that same political consultant to several City committees and commissions.”
Translation: As a quid pro quo for helping her get elected — helping her financially, the Grand Jury says — Padilla nominated Sanchez to the Planning Commission and appointed him to other committees, qualifications be damned.
Sanchez’s Planning Commission nomination was rebuffed by Council members who care about the public interest. He resigned his committee seat under pressure. That doesn’t make Padilla less compromised.
Padilla told KCRA Channel 3, “I am deeply concerned about the issues raised in the grand jury investigation,” which is ironic, as she is the issue raised in the Grand Jury investigation.
The origin of the investigation was a 2023 scandal that occurred when the Council went into closed session to discuss a “performance review” of City Manager Harry Black.
Mayor Lincoln doggedly lobbied to fire Black but could not sway a majority. Within 30 minutes, Councilman Brandon Villapudua alleges, he received a text from Sanchez urging him to switch sides and vote to fire Black. Meaning at least one Council member had notified Sanchez of the deliberations in violation of the Ralph M. Brown Act.
“The Council has received training regarding the Brown Act,” the Grand Jury, writes, “but some members have demonstrated open disregard for that training.”
The leak was not only a Brown Act violation; it destroyed the trust Council members must have in each other so that closed-session discussions can be candid and thorough and lead to well-reasoned decisions.
The city hired outside investigators who charged over $44,000–the going rate, city sources say–but failed to get to the bottom of the leak. Possibly because certain council members refused to surrender their phones to a forensic cellphone expert.
The city has created a side issue by refusing to release the investigator’s report, even to the Grand Jury.
“The Council has ‘tied the hands’ of the Grand Jury,” the report fumes, and “has prevented the fulfillment of our mandate which is to investigate and ensure that local governments are acting in compliance with the laws …”
But back to the 209 Times. “Their actions have affected every level of City government,” the Grand Jury concluded.
Frank Gayaldo, emailed the opportunity to respond, replied in part, “This report is part of a broader coordinated campaign to stop 209 Times from reporting on public corruption. We are accustomed to ruffling feathers and upsetting the local power structure. We see this for what it is: protect Harry Black, Brando Villapudua and cabal interests from scrutiny.”
The “cabal,” in Gayaldo’s view, is a conspiracy of elites to run the show at the expense of the general public.
Sanchez also emailed a reaction to the Grand Jury report: “Fuck you and them.”
Emails to Mayor Kevin Lincoln and San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas, both of whom have enjoyed support from the 209 Times, and even socialize with 209 Times people, went unanswered.
The Grand Jury’s report went on to recommend:
· Officials should make rules for handling “unlawful threatening communications” including referring the worst to the District Attorney’s Office.
· Cellphones should be banned from closed sessions.
· The 209 Times’ allies on the Council should stop being stooges, though the Grand jury phrased it differently.
“Members of the Stockton City Council, who support the efforts of that SMP, are complicit in the deterioration of comradery, trust, respect and ethical governing in Stockton,” is how they worded it.
And these lackeys should be voted out of office or even recalled. Including leaders at any level of government who merely pay Tecuani or Tlatoani to not be attacked. Even if such cowards don’t further the 209 Times’ agenda, they feed a cancerous tumor sickening the body politic.
Fight for your city. Demand better.
Michael Fitzgerald’s column runs on Wednesdays. On Twitter and Instagram as Stocktonopolis. Email:mfitzgeraldstockton@gmail.com
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Thank you for calling this “bs” –
Mr Fitzgerald! 100% on point. Our city deserves better.
Ms Padilla needs to be recalled. Mayor Lincoln needs to step down now. It is disgraceful what these two are doing to our city council and city employees. And for 209 Times owner to invade [not report] Stockton City Government in my opinion is a violation and should be punished.
Finally with this scathing report Mr. Lincoln should withdraw his candidacy for the fall election. This is a blight on the city of Stockton. The DA needs to take action.
First I heard of this Grand Jury investigation is when Mr Fitzgerald contacted me asking for a quote. The Grand Jury never attempted to interview anyone from 209 Times. Okie dokie.
Yeah- funny that. Grand juries don’t often tell the (alleged) [crooks, con men, scam artists, general slime, leeches on the public] (allegedly) that they’re investigating them, especially when those (alleged) [crooks, con men, scam artists, general slime, leeches on the public] (allegedly) have been known to bring heavy-handed pressure on people involved in city affairs to get them to do their bidding (allegedly).
Funny that.
Why should they if 209 Times is the problem? Just look at this extremely unprofessional response. It tells all!
Lincoln, Padilla, some city council candidates and the two mayor candidates seem to be complicit with 209 times. The DA seems to be with 209 times also. A big problem is with the people that read this website. They love reading crap about public officials and don’t fact check anything. Thank you for a great article.
It is discouraging to see how easily our community has been manipulated by people who have self-serving agendas.
What’s being describe in this report goes beyond bullying and harassment. Along with probable election code violations, we’re talking about extortion and racketeering. I suspect federal indictments may well be on their way — which might help explain why Sanchez is currently out of the country.
I was listening to the NPR podcast about 209 Times earlier… the irony of Motecuzoma Sanchez (full name entirely made up by him) accepting political consulting fees for favorable coverage on his website is baffling. In the NPR piece, he claims the whole reason he started 209 Times was because the Stockton Record was accepting money from politicians for favorable coverage. Hilarious.
I also find it difficult to pin down what the beliefs of Patrick Powell (real name by birth) are. In that NPR piece, he claims to be a “progressive.” But 209 Times shovels the lowest grade of alt-right slop down their reader’s gullets. It’s so strange.
And he also seems to flip-flop allegiances on a whim… he once supported Brando Villapudua, now everyday he spouts unfounded claims about him abusing children. What happened? I have a feeling it was something petty and personal. He even started throwing shots at Mayor Lincoln recently. It makes no sense. The laundry list of contradictions and inane opinions from Pat Powell is a mile long.
The funniest thing I learned about Patrick is he once sued the mayor for blocking him on social media. Way to clog the judicial system, Wrathful Lord. You are a true hero. (Also, make any post on 209 Times slightly disagreeing with his doggerel and you will be blocked in a heartbeat. Again, the irony…)
My best guess is the man is a sociopathic nihilist. His only goal is to make money exploiting the bizarre ghetto circus side show that is Stockton. I would say he should be ashamed, but I know that emotion is not within his capabilities.
I think your last paragraph nails it
Politics has always been tainted by dirty tricks perpetrated by people that lack ethics. Some may think that lying to the public, misrepresenting facts, smearing a person’s using innuendo is part of free speech, they are wrong. Libel and slander is against the law. Likewise, some may think that bullying is a form of lobbying, it is not. Bullying leans toward blackmail and that is illegal. Traditionally, we have relied on the fourth estate (the press) to alert us of wrong doing and monitor government and our leaders. To have better government, we need better citizens. It is tough for us to be better citizens if we are not kept informed. This is where there has been a breakdown in our community in part to corporate decisions resulting in the decline of the Record that once did a credible job. Some of this is due in part to the shift in media technology, but the bottom line is that getting news via social media is a poor substitute for professional journalism. Social Media Platform owners as a whole have a poor track record of verifying content they solicit and as a result every user should be suspect of anything that appears on those platforms. Stories that lack reference to sources should automatically be suspect. A lot of this also falls on the shoulders of us, the public, the citizens, the voters. The grand jury report needs to be taken seriously and several elected officials need to be taken to task. Thank you Michael Fitzgerald to your commitment to report the facts.
Read this story on the Stocktonia which I had hoped would rise above politics. I don’t know the actors and don’t really care, but I do know our constitution says we have a right to free speech. It seems like more and more people’s feelings get hurt – it becomes bullying or hate speech. If these pundits have managed to create a digital following of foot soldiers they should be free to do so in our free society. If the opposition can not counter them with valid arguments they shouldn’t use the grand jury and stocktonia as their means of doing so.
If you want to remove either one of these people, all you have to do is find which company holds their surety bond.
All elected officials must hold a surety bond which protects the public from any wrongdoing.
your find the surety bond company and threaten with a lawsuit against their bond.
The surety bond company will avoid to pay the face value of the bond by dropping the bond.
The moment the bond is pulled, both of these people are automatically fired since there is no bond to protect the public.
Forget recalls or impeachments.
Choose the easy fast way of retribution.
These also works on crooked cops too.