The IRE office will be closed from December 25th to January 5th.
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Lawyers market to potential silicosis victims
Mike Tolson of the Houston Chronicle examined lawsuits related to silicosis, an occupational lung disease caused by exposure to silica which is used by industry in dozens of ways. He found that “To attorneys who had earned millions from asbestos settlements, it represented the next potential windfall.” The lawyers did not need sick people, only…
Read MoreN.J. funds schools that manage money poorly
Jean Rimbach and Kathleen Carroll of The (Hackensack, N.J.) Record analyzed audits of more than 100 state-funded preschools in New Jersey’s poorest communities, reviewed tax returns, financial documents and contracts and interviewed dozens of state and local officials, owners and teachers to show that seven years after New Jersey launched its landmark program for disadvantaged…
Read MoreSpy agency collects data about Americans’ phone calls
Leslie Cauley of the USA Today found the “National Security Agency had been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth.” Cauley’s sources say the agency uses the call data to “analyze calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity” but that…
Read MoreFighting eminent domain mostly a losing battle
Steve Kemme and Gregory Korte of The Cincinnati Enquirer analyzed real-estate sales records and found that those who sold their homes for an urban renewal project in suburban Norwood made more than twice what their homes were worth — while those who had their properties taken by eminent domain made three times their appraised value.…
Read MoreLegal claims, retirements paid by taxpayers
In a continuation of the “Conduct Unbecoming” series, Lewis Kamb of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer examined “state pension and payroll records of eight King County sheriff’s deputies and found example after example of how such problem officers continued drawing salaries and earning service credits for years.” The investigation also found that “taxpayers have paid hundreds of…
Read MoreCampaign finance reform plan lacks scope
Kevin Begos and Doug Stanley of The Tampa Tribune analyzed records to show that the campaign finance reform legislation backed by Senate President Tom Lee would have a serious effect on only about 5 percent of soft money groups in the state, leaving vast loopholes in other places. “Of the 816 soft money committees listed…
Read MoreBrown’s e-mails reveal FEMA reaction to Katrina
Daniel Lathrop and John Perry of The Center for Public Integrity used FOIA to obtain e-mail records of former FEMA head Michael Brown, showing that “while many residents were awaiting rescue from rooftops or wading through toxic floodwaters, it was business as usual in the world of money, power and government inside the Washington beltway.”…
Read MoreL.A. county soft on employee discipline
Troy Anderson of the Los Angeles Daily News reviewed records to show that in recent years county employees’ firings or suspensions were softened by the Civil Service Commission. The commission overturned or reduced discipline recommended by county departments in nearly half of cases from 2001 to 2004. “Out of 17 sheriff’s cases the commission considered…
Read MorePatients denied kidneys because of paperwork
Tracy Weber and Charles Ornstein of the Los Angeles Times used interviews, internal memos and transplant records to show that 25 Kaiser Permanente patients in Northern California were denied the chance for new kidneys that were nearly perfectly matched to them last year during the troubled start-up of the giant HMO’s kidney transplant program in…
Read MoreHomes remain out of reach for many
Gina Edwards, Deirdre Conner and Kori Rumore of the Naples Daily News analyzed real estate transactions culled from property appraiser records to show how the real estate market has shifted. In 2003, in Collier County, Fla., almost 60 percent of single-family homes on the market — more than 4,500 — sold for less than $300,000.…
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