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Read MoreThe New England Center for Investigative Journalism found that 13 of the 21 companies awarded federal stimulus contracts from the Massachusetts Transportation Highway Division failed to disclose serious pollution or workplace safety penalties leveled against them, as is required by law. Together, these companies have received $54 million dollars of federal money. As a result…
Read MoreAn investigation by Daniel Chacón of The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.) found that the “Colorado Springs Police Department’s tracking of dozens of take-home government-owned vehicles is so incomplete no one can say if officers are using them to respond to emergencies, commuting or personal errands.” The police department was not aware of the issue until…
Read MoreBlake Morrison, Peter Eisler and Anthony DeBarros of USA Today report that a recall of tainted beef from Beef Packers of Fresno, Calif. did not include beef supplied to schools. Their investigation calls into question whether adequate steps were taken to ensure meat supplied for school lunches was safe for consumption. Beef Packers has had…
Read MoreBy Mike McGraw, The Kansas City Star I’ve been a reporter for nearly 40 years, with most of that time spent as an investigative reporter. I love what I do and have never wanted to do anything else. Three things turned me on to investigative reporting: Covering organized labor in Kansas City in the 1970s…
Read MoreTony Kennedy of the (Minneapolis) Star Tribune reports that some of the state’s charter schools have found a loophole in the Minnesota law that forbids charter schools from owning property. Millions of dollars in public money have gone to build schools even though the properties remain in the hands of private nonprofit corporations. According to…
Read MoreMike Chalmers of The News Journal in Wilmington, Del., found a pattern of “denial and delay” among administrative law judges who have the power to grant or deny Social Security benefits to disabled workers in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. The News Journal “analyzed four years of decisions by ALJ in every state, more than 1.7…
Read MoreBeth Reinhard and Marc Caputo of The Miami Herald report that Florida taxpayers foot the bill for the insurance premiums of Governor Charlie Crist and other high-ranking Florida officials. According to the article, 2,431 of the 27,479 government employees who receive this subsidy earn more than $100,000. The subsidy program costs about $45 million a…
Read MoreTapping into hundreds of pages of medical records, Meg Kissinger of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel told the story of Iraq vet James Weigl, who committed suicide soon after his return to Wisconsin. Kissinger’s reporting identified numerous mistakes and missed warning signs – by the Army and the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Milwaukee. For example,…
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