An investigation by Mc Nelly Torres and Jon Burstein of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel revealed that Florida Housing Council, a foreclosure rescue firm, was defrauding the very people it claimed to aid. Interviews with 11 homeowners, in addition to the review of seven lawsuits and hundreds of property records, uncovered a pattern of deception and [...]
Archive for May, 2007
Collateral Damage – Human Rights and Military Aid after 9/11
May 30th, 2007 
rescntr The Center for Public Integrity has published “one of the most comprehensive resources on U.S. military aid and assistance in the post-9/11 era. ‘Collateral Damage’ couples the reporting of 10 of the world’s leading investigative journalists on four continents with a powerful database combining U.S. military assistance, foreign lobbying expenditures, and human rights abuses into [...]
Posted in CAR, First Amendment & FOIA, Government (federal/state/local), Homeland Security, Military, Politics, Terrorism 
Comments OffDelays impeded implementation of air defense system prior to 9/11
May 29th, 2007 rescntr Michael Fabey of Aerospace Daily and Defense Report writes that the inability of the Pentagon and Canadian defense officials to keep a lid on costs and schedules may have cost them the opportunity to modernize their radar-based air defense system in time to possibly thwart the terrorist from completing their 9/11 attacks.
Police chief misrepresents crime report to city council
May 29th, 2007 rescntr Will Carless of voiceofsandiego.org reports that San Diego’s Chief of Police delivered misinformation in his report to the City Council. “The chief’s statements were made at the height of contract negotiations between the police department and the city. While the chief was painting a rosy picture of crime rates before four city councilmen, the police [...]
South Florida security questionable
May 29th, 2007 rescntr A three-month WTVJ-Miami investigation raised questions about how well Wackenhut, one of the country’s biggest security firms, is protecting the South Florida public and whether they’re billing taxpayers millions of dollars for guards not even on the job. Investigative producer Scott Zamost and reporter Jeff Burnside tracked down former employees and supervisors, reviewed hundreds of [...]
Special-ed missteps contribute to violence in Philadelphia schools
May 23rd, 2007 rescntr A two-part investigation by Martha Woodall and Susan Snyder of The Philadelphia Inquirer, part of a continuing series on violence against teachers, revealed the lapses in the district
Series a look at Tarrant County (TX) schools
May 21st, 2007 rescntr In its series “Measuring Up,” the Fort Worth Star-Telegram looked at the area’s public schools to see how they were performing. Using school test scores and other data, they identified key trends, including: which schools are doing better or worse than expected on state assessments; a large percentage of students requiring remedial help once in [...]
Fire chief retires while under investigation
May 21st, 2007 rescntr The fire chief of Aurora, Colo. is retiring following a KCNC-Denver reported that “he had apparently played golf during normal work hours on as many as 23 weekdays during an 8 month period.” The city had suspended the chief pending its own investigation into the allegations, but the chief has said that he is retiring [...]
US soldiers may be using inferior body armor
May 18th, 2007 rescntr U.S. troops are not being provided with the best body armor according to an NBC News investigation. Lisa Myers reported that independent ballistics tests commissioned by NBC show that a product called Dragon Skin is safer than the Army-issued Interceptor armor in stopping the most lethal shots. The Army banned Dragon Skin last year before [...]
Mortgage Meltdown
May 17th, 2007 rescntr A broadcast and web package from Tisha Thompson of WMAR-Baltimore uncovers the dirt on home mortgage lending in Maryland. The issue of race and credit is explored as a foreclosure boom is forecast due to an increase the number of subprime loans issued. Included are maps of foreclosure “hotspots” and a glossary of lending terms. [...]
