The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
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Concealing County Corruption: Anatomy of a Cover-Up
Wayne Dolcefino saves the best for last. In his final investigation for KTRK-TV, he and the 13 Undercover Unit demonstrated relentless persistence as they attempted to shake up a county government with an abysmal record of policing itself. This submission begins with four reports detailing shocking evidence of corruption inside the downtown precinct of Constable Jack Abercia. 13 Undercover spent several months doing painstaking surveillance -- catching the Constable’s deputies running his personal errands, working extra jobs on the clock and stockpiling never driven county patrol cars while lawmen were being laid off. 13 Undercover then managed to get a hidden camera inside the chief deputy’s office as he and two deputies talked openly about corruption inside the precinct. The language is often foul mouthed and always revealing. The FBI nabbed Aberica and two top commanders in a bribery sting weeks later. The veteran former constable is now awaiting trial. Eventually, 13 Undercover turned our cameras on county leaders to say “enough is enough.” Not only was action not forthcoming, it quickly became clear that many in positions of power wanted this all to go away without getting their hands dirty, without ending decades of a patronage system that made deputies feel required to give money to their boss’s campaigns and charities to keep their jobs. That was not an option. This investigation demanded accountability and we held leaders to the promises they made to the public. In late summer, 13 Undercover scored a major public records victory that revealed what one commentator dubbed "a cover-up of Nixonian proportions." The series culminated with the long awaited, and previously unimaginable, indictment of one of the county’s most popular elected officials – precinct 6 Constable Victor Trevino. New county directives now prohibit constables from soliciting money from their deputies and legislation is expected to filed in Austin to protect county employees from further shakedowns.
Tags: Corruption; county government; officials
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World's Cops Rec Up Strategies to nab cross-border car thieves.
Using techniques pioneered by drug traffickers and gun runners, illicit traders are plying cargo with brand names like Mercedes, Cadillac, and Lexus. Law enforcement and other experts say the worldwide trade in stolen cars and trucks is booming.
Tags: stolen cars; motor vehicles; smugglers
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Losing Signal
"..the advent of the information economy has turned the FCC from a minor D.C. player into one of the government's most powerful agencies. As the de facto czar of the nation's communications infrastructure, the commission now makes daily decisions affecting America's technological destiny-reviewing megamergers like AOL Time Warner union, evaluating the Baby Bells' expansion plans, determining whether cable companies should decide what Web content their Internet customers can view. And no one appreciates the FCC's newfound authority better than the communications industry, whose lobbying expenses now stand at roughly $125 million, more than twice the amount spent by defense firms."
Tags: FCC; lobbying; telecommunications; "Big Media; " broadband; Internet; cable; telephone; radio; broadcast licenses; deregulation; digital transition; telcos; CFIC; Dingell; Tauzin; McCain; Lott; open access; First Amendment; location-based services (LBS); privacy; Digital Democracy; National Association of Broadcasters; NAB; analog spectrum; consolidation; government auction
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No title (id: 4724)
Newsweek article describes child porn sting engineered by United States Customs Service that nabbed about 200 people, March 14, 1988.
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No title (id: 2578)
Common Cause Magazine reviews the large number of honoraria and free trips given to members of Congress by various special interest groups, including the National Cable TV Association, July/August 1989.