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Despite Washington state forestry rules that allow the Department of Natural Resources to restrict logging in problem areas, an investigation by The Seattle Times revealed that Weyerhaeuser, a logging company, operated without oversight and clear-cut large areas on unstable slopes. Landslides last December in Washington’s Chehalis River basin, where Weyerhaeuser was operating, left nearly 3,000…
Read MoreA voiceofsandiego.org review of tax records for Southeastern Economic Development Corp. (SEDC), the city of San Diego’s redevelopment department, uncovered over $250,000 in secret bonuses the agency’s two top executives had paid themselves since 2003. The bonuses had been paid without approval of the agency’s board of directors or the city council. As a result,…
Read MoreAn examination of records from Oklahoma’s Medical Examiner’s Office and Health Department by the Tulsa World showed that over 500 people have been murdered in Tulsa over the past 10 years. The stories looks at the impact of the homicides on victims’ families, and maps hot spots in the city where deaths have been concentrated.…
Read MoreA report by Dan Golden, of Condé Nast Portfolio, investigates the breadth of the Countrywide V.I.P.-loan scandal. Angelo Mozilo, C.E.O. of Countrywide, extended favors well beyond members of Congress. Among those granted favors were “former Countrywide director Henry Cisneros, who served as secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the Clinton administration; former White House…
Read MoreLos Angeles Times reporters Charles Piller and Doug Smith found that for-profit fundraisers in California are collecting significant amounts, while the nonprofits they claim to support see little of the money. “In more than 5,800 campaigns on behalf of charities that were registered with the state attorney general from 1997 to 2006, the fundraisers reported…
Read MoreMarshall Allen and Alex Richards of the Las Vegas Sun investigated the prevalence of use and abuse of prescription narcotics in Nevada. The Sun’s analysis showed that “Nevadans consume about twice the national average of several prescription painkillers,” including hydrocodone, methadone and oxycodone. Data from the Clark County coroner’s office shows that deaths from prescription…
Read MoreSusanne Rust and Meg Kissinger of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel detailed how a chemical flame retardant that was taken out of children’s pajamas 30 years ago has found its way back as a popular flame retardant used in sofa cushions, baby carriers and bassinet mattresses. As part of their ongoing Chemical Fallout series, the reporters…
Read MoreA five-part investigative series by the East Valley Tribune (Phoenix, Ariz.) looks at the efforts of Joe Arpaio, sheriff of Maricopa County, to crack down on illegal immigration. Noted as one of the most aggressive enforcement efforts in the U.S, it has come at a cost to other law enforcement efforts including “slower response times…
Read More“A yearlong examination by The Sacramento Bee of more than 250 applicants for military service found that the Army, Navy and Marines accepted ex-felons, people with serious drug and alcohol or mental health problems and dozens of others with significant criminal backgrounds or otherwise troubling histories.” In the series, Russ Carollo reports on how trouble…
Read More“A little-known police force that patrols state institutions and accompanies child welfare workers to potentially dangerous homes piled up $3.4 million in overtime last year, boosting the payroll 34 percent,” reported Lawrence Ragonese and Susan K. Livio of The Star-Ledger (Newark, N.J.). The review of state payroll records showed one employee averaged 45 hours of…
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