Vallejo Faith Groups to Hold Vigil For Officer Jim Capoot Tonight

Vallejo faith organizations are holding a vigil this evening for slain Vallejo police Officer James Capoot.

The vigil, which is open to the public, will take place at the Good Samaritan Baptist Church at 407 Capitol St. at 6 p.m.

Capoot, 45, who had been with the Police Department for 19 years, was fatally shot while pursuing a bank robbery suspect on Janice Street last Thursday afternoon.

The Solano County District Attorney's Office has charged the alleged shooter, 37-year-old Henry Albert Smith Jr., of Fairfield, with murder. Smith has not entered a plea and will return to Solano County Superior Court on Tuesday.

Smith has served two prior prison sentences for an assault with a firearm in Solano County and possession of a firearm by an ex-felon in San Mateo County, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

He was paroled on June 26, 1995, and returned to prison on March 20, 1998. Smith was most recently paroled on Sept. 4, 1999, according to the CDCR.

Several pastors in Vallejo have been counseling residents in the wake of the shooting, said Rev. Terrence L. Nichols, of the New Hope Church Community.

The vigil comes at the end of a three-day holiday conference about hope and self-esteem for youth, he said.

A youth choir will perform at the start of the vigil, and local pastors and the Vallejo Police Department's chaplain are among the scheduled speakers, Nichols said.

-- Bay City News Service