Reporter Radley Balko rebuts YC CEO Garry Tan’s claim that Balko unethically colluded with DA Boudin’s office to sabotage SF journalist Dion Lim.
Key Takeaways
Balko’s 2021 Washington Post piece corrected Lim’s viral KGO-TV story claiming Boudin dropped charges against a juvenile carjacker – charges were never dropped; KGO issued a correction.
Kasie Lee (Boudin’s victim services head) contacted Balko cold; both the carjacking victim and witness Harry Mulholland independently confirmed they felt pressured by Lim and gave reluctant quotes based on false information.
Mulholland raised the question of how Lim obtained his sealed police-report contact info, pointing to SFPD as the only plausible source – which would be illegal.
Tan’s X post frames FOIA’d Balko-Lee texts as proof of a media hit; Balko argues the texts show routine source-tip handling, not coordination.
Third State Books, founded by Tan’s wife Stephanie Lim, published Dion Lim’s book Amplified – a conflict of interest Balko flags but does not litigate at length.
