Kelly Davis

Journalist
San Diego
California-based investigative reporter and editor focusing on the criminal justice system and vulnerable populations

About

Kelly Davis

I'm a freelance journalist based in San Diego who focuses on issues related to adult and juvenile incarceration, mental illness and homelessness. Until March 2015, I was the associate editor at San Diego CityBeat, an alternative newsweekly that I helped start in 2002.

My work has included investigations into the high rate of deaths in San Diego County jails and conditions in juvenile detention facilities. I've also written extensively about coronavirus in jails and prisons, California’s sex offender laws and the city of San Diego's ongoing efforts to address its large homeless population. My reporting has been honored by the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, the San Diego chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, the National Alliance on Mental Illness and the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement. I'm currently a fellow at The Imprint, a nonprofit news outlet focused on child welfare and the juvenile justice system.