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New York State road work account raided, little left for repairs
Michelle Breidenbach of The Post-Standard (Syracuse, N.Y.) mined state financial documents to show the abuse of New York State’s Dedicated Highway and Bridge Trust Fund. It’s not “dedicated” at all. Years of raiding and borrowing have left just 22 percent of the fund to fix the state roads.
Read MoreU.S. government funded companies doing business in Iran
An investigation by The New York Times reveals that “the federal government has awarded more than $107 billion in contract payments, grants and other benefits over the past decade to foreign and multinational American companies while they were doing business in Iran, despite Washington’s efforts to discourage investment there.”
Read MoreParolees clustered in a handful of communities in Utah
An investigation by The Salt Lake Tribune found clustering of probationers and parolees “in specific neighborhoods and even apartment buildings, despite rules prohibiting people on supervision from associating with one another. Law enforcement and scholars say offenders are more likely to succeed if they are dispersed, but a lack of halfway houses and city ordinances…
Read MoreReasons to be excited for the CAR conference
By Jaimi Dowdell, IRE Training Director If you’re still debating whether to head to Phoenix next week for the computer-assisted reporting conference, I want to give you a few reasons why you should make the trip. The people. I’m not ashamed to admit that I wouldn’t be where I am in my life or my…
Read MoreTracking gang activity in Tennessee
The Tennessean‘s three-part series on gangs reveals a growing problem across the state, particularly in suburbia and small towns. Law enforcement is overwhelmed and schools are ripe recruiting grounds in what’s part of a national trend of gangs expanding their influence to areas outside the urban core to sell drugs. The newspaper gained access to…
Read MoreImportant details for CAR 2010 conference attendees
On-site registrations will be accepted for the upcoming Computer-Assisted Reporting conference beginning Thursday, March 11 at the Sheraton Downtown Phoenix. For details on where to go for registration, parking and other key conference information, visit http://data.nicar.org/node/3912. See this year’s schedule at http://data.nicar.org/conference/schedule/7. You don’t want to miss this conference!
Read MorePayday loan industry profits, fights regulation
Keith Epstein of the Huffington Post Investigative Fund provides an inside look at the tactics of the influential $42 billion-a-year payday lending industry, which is thriving from a surge in emergency loans to people struggling through the recession as it pours record sums into lobbying and campaigns. It’s getting results, too – most notably in…
Read MoreLawyers to Ohio’s governor intervened in active criminal investigation
An investigation by Randy Ludlow of The Columbus Dispatch revealed that the top two lawyers to Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland intervened in an active criminal investigation by the Ohio State Highway Patrol into “an alleged scheme to cover up the use of illegal immigrants to remodel a state-leased office building.” A lobbyist who is close…
Read MoreDespite fatalities, many police officers fail to wear seat belts
An investigation by the Houston Chronicle found dozens of police officers across the country have died in car crashes while unbuckled — at least 64 between 2004 and 2008 alone. It also discovered a widespread culture in police agencies of officers refusing to wear seat belts. “Some officers worry that their belts could hinder them…
Read MoreKingpin of illegal wildlife trade turns focus to tigers
An investigation by Bryan Christy for National Geographic reveals that Anson Wong of Malaysia, “the Pablo Escobar of Illegal Wildlife Trade” is out of U.S. prison and has plans to specialize in a new tiger operation with help from his government.
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