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Government records and interviews revealed that a number of lucrative land deals in Prince George’s County have gone to individuals with ties to County Executive Jack B. Johnson. An investigation by The Washington Post‘s Cheryl W. Thompson and Mary Pat Flaherty found county-owned land had been sold to people linked to Johnson on at least…
Read MoreAn investigation by Jason Grotto, Laurie Cohen and Sara Olkon of the Chicago Tribune reveals the realities of a 10-year plan to rehabilitate Chicago’s public housing. The investigation found “that almost nine years into what was billed as a 10-year program, the city has completed only 30 percent of the plan’s most ambitious element —…
Read MoreAtlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Heather Vogell and computer-assisted reporting specialist John Perry found that Georgia schools routinely promote students who state law says should stay back because they’re falling behind. The law, aimed at stopping so-called “social promotion,” requires schools to retain students in grades 3, 5 and 8 who can’t pass certain standardized tests.But the…
Read MoreDemocratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama got a discount on the $1.32 million loan for his Chicago mansion, obtaining an interest rate of 5.625 percent on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, below the average for such loans at the time in Chicago. Washington Post investigative reporter Joe Stephens found that, compared with the average terms offered…
Read MoreThe U.S. attorney in Kansas City, Mo., has asked the Justice Department to appoint a special attorney to review convictions in the firefighters explosion case. The move was prompted by an investigation published in The Kansas City Star on Sunday in which witnesses said a federal investigator pressured them to lie and a new witness…
Read MoreNew Yorker’s Seymour Hersh reports that Congress agreed late last year to President Bush’s request to fund a major escalation of covert operations against Iran. Quoting current and former military, intelligence, and congressional sources, Hersh said the funding is designed to destabilize the country’s religious leadership. He also quotes fired Admiral William Fallon, former head…
Read MoreTroy Anderson of the Los Angeles Daily News investigates widespread problems in California’s system of testing pregnant women for drug use. The drug screenings used in California’s hospitals are likely to return false positives. The poor implementation of the testing, originally designed to help crack babies and drug-dependent mothers, has resulted in families being torn…
Read MoreFifteen witnesses in a trial that led to the conviction of five people in the deaths of six Kansas City firefighters told The Kansas City Star that a federal investigator in the firefighters’ explosion case had pressured them to lie. Star projects reporter Mike McGraw conducted hundreds of interviews and reviewed 30,000 pages of court…
Read MoreAdam Liptak of The New York Times reports that the “millionaire’s amendment” was struck down by the Supreme Court in a 5-to-4 decision on Thursday. “The law at issue in Thursday’s decision imposed special rules in races with candidates who finance their own campaigns. Those candidates are required to disclose more information, and their opponents…
Read MoreTipsheet and audio CDs from the 2008 IRE Annual Conference in Miami (June 5-8) are now available from the IRE Resource Center. Orders can be placed online or by contacting the Resource Center (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org). 2008 IRE Tipsheet Collection – $15, plus $5 shipping 2008 IRE Conference Audio (mp3 format) – $20, plus $5…
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