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Santa Clara County workers ignored red flags in Shirakawa case

“A trail of embarrassing inaction at numerous levels of county government enabled the years-long crime spree of disgraced former Supervisor George Shirakawa Jr., who will be sentenced in the coming weeks for perjury and misuse of public funds,” according to an investigation by the San Jose Mercury News.  

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Athlete charities often lack standards

“An ‘Outside the Lines’ investigation of 115 charities founded by high-profile, top-earning male and female athletes has found that most of their charities don’t measure up to what charity experts would say is an efficient, effective use of money,” according to ESPN’s story.  

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Many Low-Income Students May Fail Because of Reading Law

“Among thousands of Oklahoma students who could be held back in third grade for failing a state reading test next year, a disproportionate share will likely be low-income children, anOklahoma Watch analysis of state data found.” Read Oklahoma Watch’s story here,  

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Parolee GPS ankle monitors: Major flaws found in vendor’s system

“The electronic ankle monitors California used for several years to monitor more than 4,000 high-risk sex offenders and gang members were so inaccurate and unreliable that corrections officials said that the public was ‘in imminent danger,’” according to the Los Angeles Times’ investigation.

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For Boston cabbies, a losing battle against the numbers

“Boston’s cabbies can be a surly lot, but consider what they endure. A Globe investigation finds a taxi trade where fleet owners get rich, drivers are frequently fleeced, and the city does little about it,” according to the Globe’s story.

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Lame-duck Cravaack handed out large raises to his staff

“Former U.S. Rep. Chip Cravaack (R-Minn.) awarded his staff some of the largest salary increases in Congress last year as he left after one term in office. For the first three quarters of 2012, the Minnesota Republican’s staff payroll averaged a little over $197,000. In the final three months of the year, it shot up…

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Title loans hurt poor, critics say

“More than 430 auto-title-lending branches have been licensed in Arizona since 2009, the year after voters rejected payday lending, state figures show. By comparison, from 2000 to 2008, about 160 title-lending branches were licensed with the state. The rise of title lenders has rekindled a debate over whether these kinds of high-interest loans ultimately help…

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As OSHA Emphasizes Safety, Long-Term Health Risks Fester

“The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the agency that many Americans love to hate and industry calls overzealous, has largely ignored the slow, silent killers that claim the most lives,” according to an investigation by The New York Times.  

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Leaking gas pipelines across Michigan create an underground danger

“Crisscrossing Michigan are more than 3,100 miles of old wrought- and cast-iron natural-gas pipelines — the type federal regulators consider the most at risk of corrosion, cracking and catastrophic rupturing. The state’s two largest utilities have replaced less than 15% of these pipelines — 542 miles — in the past decade,” according to an investigation…

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Corporations, pro-business nonprofits foot bill for judicial seminars

“Conservative foundations, multinational oil companies and a prescription drug maker were the most frequent sponsors of more than 100 expense-paid educational seminars attended by federal judges over a 4 1/2-year period, according to a Center for Public Integrity investigation.” Read CPI’s full story here.

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