Francisco Valadez was 17 and a resident of Oakland when he was shot and killed on May 1, 2008. His death occurred during a year that proved especially deadly for the city — Oakland recorded 125 homicides in 2008 amid persistent gang violence, economic disparities, and strained policing.

The Oakland Police Department struggled that year with low staffing, heavy detective caseloads, and the lowest homicide clearance rate among major California cities. Those conditions, alongside witness intimidation and community mistrust, left many cases unresolved; Valadez’s killing is described as part of that larger pattern of violence and unsolved homicides in neighborhoods such as East and West Oakland.

Does anyone have information about Francisco, where he spent time, or what happened on May 1, 2008?