Crime
Project uncovers more than 160,000 unreported arson cases
Arson is far more common and dangerous than has been previously reported, a new project by Scripps Howard News Service has found.The yearlong investigation has identified more than 163,000 fires in America that experts agree have a significant chance of being undetected arsons. These fires caused at least 788 deaths, 13,009 injuries and at least…
Read MoreSpecial Report: Help wanted in Fukushima: Low pay, high risks and gangsters
“In reviewing Fukushima working conditions, Reuters interviewed more than 80 workers, employers and officials involved in the unprecedented nuclear clean-up. A common complaint: the project’s dependence on a sprawling and little scrutinized network of subcontractors – many of them inexperienced with nuclear work and some of them, police say, have ties to organized crime.”
Read MoreNursing home residents’ trust funds lack oversight
“Thousands of residents in U.S. nursing homes and other long-term care institutions have had their personal savings raided or mismanaged after relying on the facilities to safeguard the money in special trust fund accounts, a USA TODAY investigation shows. At least 10 of the thefts have exceeded $100,000 from a single nursing home account.”
Read MoreExtra Extra Monday: Faking the grade, mug shots online, pharma payments and the politics of mental health care
How Sunrise police make millions selling drugs | Sun Sentinel“Police in this suburban town best known for its sprawling outlet mall have hit upon a surefire way to make millions. They sell cocaine.” How safe are Indiana day cares? | Indianapolis Star“Indiana spends about $2.5 million inspecting and licensing more than 4,000 day cares that…
Read MoreMaker of Mexican dietary supplement used fake addresses and lied about ingredients
A USA Today investigation found that consumers who buy Reumofan, a Mexican dietary supplement considered a “100% natural” treatment for arthritis and joint pain, “are risking dangerous side effects and trusting their lives to a company that uses fake addresses, lies about the ingredients in its products and may not even exist.” USA Today set out…
Read MorePublic Enemies: Social Media Is Fueling Gang Wars in Chicago
Last year more than 500 people were murdered in Chicago, a greater number than in far more populous cities such as New York and Los Angeles. The prevalence of gun crimes in Chicago is due in large part to a fragmentation of the gangs on its streets: There are now an estimated 70,000 members in…
Read MoreExtra Extra Monday: Overdoses, background checks, housing markets, midwifery and fraudulent accounting
Use only as directed | ProPublica and This American Life “About 150 Americans a year die by accidentally taking too much acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol. The toll does not have to be so high.” Read the stories from ProPublica. Company Behind Snowden Vetting Did Check on D.C. Shooter | Bloomberg “The U.S. government…
Read MorePretrial detainees on the rise in New York
WNYC News reports that “over the past decade, as New York City’s backlog of felony cases has grown, so too has the time defendants are spending behind bars before trial. The average pretrial detention in a felony case was 95 days in 2012.”
Read MoreAt violent summer’s end, weary city grapples with the toll
“At the end of a summer that saw significant increases in shootings and homicides, The Sun told the stories of seven Baltimoreans affected by the violence. They included a man whose wife was killed, a witness who fled the city, a cop on the beat and the leader of a neighborhood watch group.”
Read More12 years after reporters help prove man’s innocence, prosecutors finally dismiss conviction
In December 2001, the Chicago Tribune published a five-part series, “Cops and Confessions,” with one of the installments highlighting the case of Daniel Taylor, an inmate serving a life sentence without parole for a double murder he didn’t commit. Nearly 12 years later, on June 28th, 2013, Cook County prosecutors would admit the truth and…
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