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Former chief deputy caught pawning department gun
“A Yancey County News investigation has led to the arrest of a former chief deputy on a charge of felony embezzlement. In a year-long series of stories the paper found that a pistol, bought for the sheriff’s department, had been pawned.” “The newspaper proved that the gun was listed on the inventory of the sheriff’s…
Read MoreGas company giants plotted to suppress land prices
“A Reuters investigation has found that under the direction of CEO Aubrey McClendon, Chesapeake Energy Corp. plotted with its top competitor to suppress land prices in one of America’s most promising oil and gas plays.” “In emails between Chesapeake and Encana Corp, Canada’s largest natural gas company, the rivals repeatedly discussed how to avoid bidding…
Read MoreThieves and gamblers given control of disabled vets’ assets
“A Houston Chronicle/Hearst series on disabled veterans ripoffs nationwide found convicted thieves, inveterate gamblers, the bankrupt and the mentally ill were repeatedly handed control of disabled veterans’ assets and estates by the VA – and then stole from them.” “The findings of this investigation of more than 100 prosecutions and decades of audits of this…
Read MoreVirginia police deny access, even when investigation is over
“19-year-old Hailu Brook was shot and killed by Fairfax County police after he allegedly robbed a bank and crossed the county line. Officers fired 25 shots into his body, and the Arlington County Police Department conducted an official investigation into the actions of the Fairfax officers.” “The case is closed, but the Arlington police chief…
Read MoreMilwaukee Police Department misreporting violent assaults
“Echoing the findings of a Journal Sentinel investigation last month, Ben Poston reports that more than 5,300 violent assaults have been misreported since 2006, according to Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn whom told a Common Council committee Thursday.” “An internal department audit shows that 20% of aggravated assaults were underreported as lesser offenses that didn’t…
Read MoreUniversity of Iowa Hospitals sharing patient information with fundraisers
“Clark Kauffman of The Des Moines Register reports that the University of Iowa Hospitals is giving patient names and specific patient-treatment information to a fundraising organization that solicits donations for the hospital through written appeals signed by physicians.” “The hospital is also engaged in what it calls “wealth screenings of patients” as part of an…
Read MoreMillions spent on high-end routers for small, rural areas
“Charleston (W.Va.) Gazette reporter Eric Eyre found that the state of West Virginia used $24 million in federal stimulus money to purchase more than a thousand “enterprise-class” Internet routers at $22,600 each even though the West Virginia Office of Technology warned that the routers were “grossly oversized. “The report states that the high-end routers were…
Read MoreNational tutoring program rampant with fraud
In a three-part series, the Star Tribune has found that a billion-dollar federal tutoring program is rife with fraud and mismanagement. The program, officially known as Supplemental Educational Services, is one of the lesser known and little scrutinized portions of No Child Left Behind. The investigation found that it has been lightly regulated by the…
Read MoreLawyers playing key role in fundraising for the 2012 presidential election
The Daily Business Review takes a closer look at the 2012 presidential election and the role lawyers have played in fundraising. They combed through FEC and OpenSecrets.org records to compile a story, with numerous charts with breakdowns on lawyers helping President Obama and Mitt Romney and the percentage of their funds that come from lawyers.…
Read MoreAn in-depth look at Florida’s ‘stand your ground’ law
“In light of the Trayvon Martin case, the Tampa Bay Times spent two months identifying and analyzing self-defense cases in which defendants invoked Florida’s controversial “stand your ground” law.” The paper collected photos of victims and defendants and built nearly 200 case studies into an interactive database. The Times used public records to identify victim…
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