Blog
West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection officials never reviewed two key pollution-prevention plans for the Freedom Industries tank farm before the Jan. 9 chemical leak that contaminated drinking water for 300,000 residents, according to interviews and documents obtained under the state’s public-records law.
Read MoreMississippi is one of three states where more students with a learning disability graduate with an alternate diploma than a regular one. That poses a serious problem for many students leaving the state’s special education programs. According to the Hechinger Report, many colleges and employers don’t recognize the alternative diplomas. “As a result, thousands of…
Read MoreThe 4th Judicial Circuit, which consists of Duval, Clay and Nassau counties, dramatically leads the state in the number of juveniles incarcerated through a method called direct commitment. That’s usually a plea deal reached between a juvenile’s lawyer and the prosecutor. When juveniles agree to plea deals, they are often incarcerated without the chance to…
Read MoreTrying to get your boss to send you to the upcoming CAR Conference in Baltimore? Try these suggestions, courtesty of your colleagues on the NICAR listserv. “Our competitors will have people there, and they will ultimately use the skills they learn to publish stories we wish we had.” – Matthew Doig, Newsday “If your bosses have ever…
Read MoreIt took the Honolulu-based Civil Beat almost one year and $935 to get access to files on three discharged police officers. The records, which were heavily redacted, provide new insight into the case of an officer accused of raping a woman on the hood of his patrol car. The officer’s case “illustrates how difficult it…
Read MoreAttorneys for an inmate accused of murdering a federal correctional officer cited a Citizens’ Voice investigation into the case as they laid the groundwork Wednesday to spare him from the death penalty. For a December story the paper obtained closely guarded prison documents that showed a stark shift in the way the inmate Jessie Con-ui was disciplined. Treatement ranged from…
Read MoreBy Ron Campbell The NICAR conference is like the NICAR list on steroids. If you don’t get that reference, let me explain. I’m on the West Coast. I have posted a highly technical question on the NICAR list at 6 p.m. on a Friday and received a detailed, precise, accurate answer from a colleague on the East Coast — remember, this…
Read MoreWNYC today compiled a clever list of “18 ways Christie and his officials have blocked access to information.” The release of the subpoenaed documents “exposed the Christie Administration’s involvement in Bridgegate show how the Governor’s Office has been keeping its decisions and expenditures quiet despite laws that require official business to be made public.” The…
Read MoreIRE is looking to you for input on sessions for the upcoming IRE Conference, June 26-29, 2014 in San Francisco, CA. Proposals for sessions will be accepted from Jan. 27-Feb. 21, 2014. It will not be possible to include every panel submitted in the program. If your panel is selected, you will be notified no later than mid-April.…
Read More