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:
Search results for "bounty hunter" ...
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Nevada Bounty Hunters
KLAS-TV investigates the rights that bounty hunters have while in search of a fugitive. It includes "the legal authority to enter private property while in search of wanted fugitives," which is only regulated by "the state division that regulates insurance."
Tags: bounty hunter; fugitive; search; injuries; law enforcement;
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The Strong Arm of the Law: They call themselves 'bail enforcement agents,' but most know them as bounty hunters, people paid to collar recalcitrant, usually petty, criminals. But sometimes they miss.
Story explains how bounty hunters can sometimes use extreme measures to arrest a person who owes bail money. Article also talks about Rep. Asa Hutchinson's (an Arkansas Republican) calls for a "Citizen Protection Act" or "Bounty Hunter Responsibility Act" because sometimes bounty hunters make mistakes, or act inappropriately.
Tags: law; bounty hunters; bail; bail bondsmen; bond; bail bond; law enforcement; criminals; jail; Asa Hutchinson; Citizen Protection Act; Bounty Hunter Responsibility Act; fugitive
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Mother's Little Helpers
Faced with ineffective state child-support collection agencies, desperate mothers are turning more and more to private firms to get hold of the money that they're due. But critics say these firms use fuzzy contracts and overly aggressive tactics to take a hefty part of the proceeds--often leaving women worse off than they were before.
Tags: child support; state child-support collection agencies; child-support collection; HHS; Office of Child Support; deadbeat dad; bounty hunter; National Child Support; Association for Children for Enforcement of Support; Supportkids; private collection agencies; deadbeat-dad hunters; child-support payments
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I hunt men
Progressive examines the bail-bond industry and bounty hunters and the issues involved.
Tags: bail-bond industry; bounty hunter; bounty hunting; bail; bail-surety system; bail agents
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The Real Cheaters; Absentee Minded
A Riverfront Times investigation reveals that in Dallas "ballot bounty hunters are hired to fan out through minority neighborhoods and "assist" voters in applying for and casting absentee ballots." The story provides a glimpse on the real cost of political corruption. The reporter interviews a number of defrauded voters, mostly elderly African-Americans, and describes how they ballots have been taken from them and who has done it. "Arcane election laws and lax enforcement make the process seem not quite illegal, though plenty sleazy," The Observer reports.
Tags: elections; Dallas City Council; school boards; candidates; politics; minorities; poverty
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In the Event of Flight
Jeff Tietz examines the life and work of bounty hunter Tom Evangelista who operates in New York City and the surrounding area. The article looks at some of Evangelista's cases and describes his views on crime, criminals, and the bounty hunting industry.
Tags: bounty hunting; bail bonds; crime
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Manhunters
The Dallas Observer looks at modern day bounty hunters. The Observer finds that those who help locate fugitives are loosely regulated in nearly every state. More than 40 states have no local regulations on bounty hunting. The current law, Taylor v. Taintor, that applies in these 40 states allows more freedom to bounty hunters than to police, allowing bounty hunters to break and enter a house to find a fugitive.
Tags: bounty hunter; fugitive; bail; Taylor v. Taintor; police; sheriff
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Hide and Seek
Bipin Shah has spent over $1 million searching for his runaway ex-wife and two little girls. Time finds that the wealthy Philadelphia banker's family is being hidden by Children of the Underground, an organization headed by Faye Yager that hides alleged victims of abuse.
Tags: Bounty hunter; fugitive
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The high-tech hunt for deadbeat dads
The USA Weekend insert in the Columbia Daily Tribune reports that "At least 10 million U.S. kids don't get the support they're owed. Government can't seem to collect. Here come the 'daddy trackers,' who usually get their man - and about 30 percent off the top.... many thousands of custodial parents who are turning to these controversial collection agencies... Part lawyer, part entrepreneur, part gumshoe, this new breed of specialist has begun to hang out shingles in cities and towns across the nation, catering to the needs of people exasperated by the glacial pace and often shoddy performance of the beleaguered child support bureaucracies..."
Tags: child support law enforcement payment money custody battles bounty hunters