If you're going to get fired, do it the John Vartanian way. The former Santa Clara County department head continues to enjoy the travel rewards he stole. Now he's also getting another five-figure paycheck.

Silicon Valley may be home base to many of the world’s most celebrated technical disruptors, but it also holds the dubious distinction of using a voting system that, to be kind, is, well, not exactly state of the art. And to the chagrin of many, it's not going to get better any time soon.

Deadly encounters between police and citizens have increased in recent years. And while officer-involved shootings are nearly always ruled justified, mistakes are costly—both in lives and in the millions that the public pays to victims and their heirs.

Rep. Mike Honda’s office denies it engaged in a pay-to-play scheme to grant campaign contributors and prospects access to government events, despite internal emails released last week by Metro and San Jose Inside that suggest otherwise. An additional, previously unseen email could make Honda’s claims of strict separation more difficult.

As one of this year’s fiercest congressional races approaches the finish line, internal emails indicate that staffers for seven-term incumbent Mike Honda (D-San Jose) violated House rules prohibiting mixing campaign activity with official business. They also suggest a pay-to-play ethic—conferring benefits to contributors and prospective donors—has taken hold in the office of a congressman who has cast himself as a leading champion of the poor.

San Jose Inside has obtained an internal bulletin San Jose police chief Larry Esquivel sent out July 14, explaining that the status quo on smart phone searches has to change. But that could be the tip of the iceberg regarding 4th Amendment issues in Santa Clara County.

Internal emails for top Santa Clara County Office of Education administrators provide a rare glimpse into an insulated power structure that attempts to control the message at all times, delays the delivery of information when possible and spins uncomfortable facts into purple public relations prose.

A transportation measure intended to raise the local sales tax will have to wait until 2016. Silicon Valley Leadership Group CEO Carl Guardino said new polling projects low voter turnout. But questions remain about how Guardino's been handling his polling information.

Elected officials in San Jose and Santa Clara County have expressed diplomatic, if not cautious, public support for a proposal that would have the Sheriff’s Office assist an undermanned San Jose Police Department. But behind the scenes, the two law enforcement agencies have been at odds for more than a year over services already contracted.

Kathleen King ran the county's $450 million sales tax campaign, and she also happens to be CEO of the organization most likely to get leftover money from Measure A. So, coincidence or kickback?

San Jose Inside has learned that the Santa Clara County Office of Education cut tutoring services for foster youth and filed questionable federal grant reports while wasting more than a half-million dollars that could have helped the county's most needy children.

Councilmember Ash Kalra recently violated rules on elected officials using city resources to do campaign work. In an interview Friday, he readily admitted his mistake.

Campaign records with the Secretary of State’s office show that an alleged co-conspirator in State Sen. Leland Yee's pubic corruption case contributed money to just two political candidates since the beginning of 2010: Yee and Assemblywoman Nora Campos (D-San Jose).

Paul Fong may not be breaking any rules by letting a lobbyist hold a $100,000 debt over his head during his entire time in the State Assembly, but his latest campaign transgression could be seen as a violation of state law and local police policies.

Just when this story couldn’t get any stranger, Councilmember Johnny Khamis offered a new timeline of events regarding his decision last week to abstain from voting on his own memo. And some of those new events don't add up.

A bizarre occurrence flew under the radar at last week’s City Council meeting, as Councilmember Johnny Khamis abstained from a vote on his own memo. Why he did so just might make your head spin.