18 episodes
On Our Watch KQED
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- Society & Culture
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4.5 • 2.1K Ratings
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When correctional officer Valentino Rodriguez first stepped behind prison walls, he wasn't just starting a job, he was joining a family. What he didn’t know was that he was now bound by an unwritten code that would ultimately test his loyalty to his oath and his fellow officers. Five years later, Valentino's sudden death would raise questions from the FBI, his family and his mentor in the elite investigative unit where they both worked. This season, join us as we follow in Valentino’s footsteps to uncover the secrets hidden inside the most dangerous prison in California: New Folsom.
If you have tips or feedback about this series please reach out to us at onourwatch@kqed.org.
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1. Welcome to the Family | S2: New Folsom
Soon after correctional officer Valentino Rodriguez starts working at New Folsom prison, he gets caught up in a bad incident. An incarcerated man ends up in the hospital with horrific injuries, and the prison starts an investigation. Valentino feels pressured to back up his fellow officers' version of the story, even though he thinks it might not be the truth. Then he gets an opportunity he's dreamed of-- to join an elite unit investigating crimes in the prison.
Resources
If you are currently in crisis, you can dial 988 [U.S.] to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
SAMHSA National Help Line
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Helpline
US Health and Human Services
Warmline Directory
Episode Transcript
Find more information at our website.
If you have tips or feedback about this series please reach out to us at onourwatch@kqed.org.
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2. Running the Race | S2: New Folsom
Consumed with stress and fed up with how he’s being treated, Valentino Rodriguez reaches a breaking point at work. A veteran officer and mentor to Valentino starts looking into the murder that happened in the dayroom. Valentino and Mimy get married, then Valentino goes in for a final meeting with the warden of New Folsom.
Resources
If you are currently in crisis, you can dial 988 [U.S.] to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
SAMHSA National Help Line
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Helpline
US Health and Human Services
Warmline Directory
Episode Transcript
Find more information at our website.
If you have tips or feedback about this series please reach out to us at onourwatch@kqed.org.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
3. Superhero | S2: New Folsom
Valentino’s unexpected death just days after a confidential meeting with the prison’s warden leaves his grieving father with a tangle of questions and suspicions. When law enforcement and prison leadership fail to act, Val Sr. finds an ally in Sgt. Kevin Steele, a senior officer who’d taken Valentino under his wing. The two men have a shared mission–to find justice for Valentino.
Resources
If you are currently in crisis, you can dial 988 [U.S.] to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
SAMHSA National Help Line
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Helpline
US Health and Human Services
Warmline Directory
Episode Transcript
Find more information at our website.
If you have tips or feedback about this series please reach out to us at onourwatch@kqed.org.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
4. "Foul Play" | S2: New Folsom
How did Sgt. Kevin Steele go from being a true believer in the institution of New Folsom to writing an explosive memo hoping to tear it down? We sift through video evidence, interrogation tapes and internal reports to find glimpses of his transformation. But when he feels his reports of corruption are ignored—he takes an even more drastic step.
Resources
If you are currently in crisis, you can dial 988 [U.S.] to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
SAMHSA National Help Line
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Helpline
US Health and Human Services
Warmline Directory
Episode Transcript
Find more information at our website.
If you have tips or feedback about this series please reach out to us at onourwatch@kqed.org.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
5. End of Watch | S2: New Folsom
Valentino Rodriguez Sr. is on the treadmill one morning when he gets a call—Sgt. Kevin Steele is dead. Val Sr. has lost not only his friend, but his partner in their shared quest to find the truth. A meeting with the FBI provides few answers, even as new questions arise about why a second whistleblower from New Folsom has lost his life.
Resources
If you are currently in crisis, you can dial 988 [U.S.] to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
SAMHSA National Help Line
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Helpline
US Health and Human Services
Warmline Directory
Episode Transcript
Find more information at our website.
If you have tips or feedback about this series please reach out to us at onourwatch@kqed.org.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
6. The Day Room | S2: New Folsom
The team digs deep into the homicide of Luis Giovanny Aguilar—the murder in the day room that Officer Valentino Rodriguez was tasked to write a report about, and that had consumed Sgt. Kevin Steele up until the last day of his life. We track down each of the men who took part in the stabbing to find out: did officers also play a role?
Resources
If you are currently in crisis, you can dial 988 [U.S.] to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
SAMHSA National Help Line
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Helpline
US Health and Human Services
Warmline Directory
Episode Transcript
Find more information at our website.
If you have tips or feedback about this series please reach out to us at onourwatch@kqed.org.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Customer Reviews
Don’t stop
Accurate.
Season 3 please. Much needed and accurate.
A breath of fresh air.
Transparency and reporting is needed.
Season 2
Heartbreaking, told very well.
NPR’s liberal bias on display
It’s no surprise to find a heavy liberal bias in public journalism from the Bay Area, and yet it’s still disappointing for those of us with a more moderate political stance. Constant negative reporting on individual police officers to support failing public safety reform efforts is one of many cogs in a machine that harms communities of every color. I’m sure the journalists here are fully deluded into the belief that their reporting is unbiased, but it’s obviously not so, to the detriment of all.