Search results for:
Tenn. Medicaid pays for most expensive transportation
Nancy Amons of WSMV-Nashville investigated Tennessee’s TennCare (Medicaid) rides program and found that millions of dollars may have been wasted. The investigation found the program assigning patient trips to the most expensive companies, even though that is against its own regulations. “Taxpayers have been overpaying by 40% or more for some trips simply because TennCare…
Read MoreN.J. Megan’s Law deemed one of nation’s weakest
A team or reporters and editors with the Gannett New Jersey newspapers and Gannett News Service examine loopholes in Megan’s Law in a three-part series. The investigation found that New Jersey’s law stands as one of the weakest in the nation in immediately warning residents when an offender moves into their neighborhood. “In New Jersey,…
Read MoreCounty fails to monitor AIDS services program
Norberto Santana Jr. and Tony Saavedra of The Orange County Register used data crunching, document digging and old-fashioned gumshoe work to reveal how Orange County bungled its fledgling AIDS program for African-Americans. The investigation found what the county hadn’t bothered to look for when hiring an AIDS service provider. ” Pastor Aubrey Keys, the person…
Read MoreRCFP finds cases disappear into hidden dockets
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press’ quarterly magazine, The News Media & the Law, reports “more than 450 cases in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., were completely hidden from the public through the use of a hidden docketing system that two federal appeals courts have declared unconstitutional.” The report, written by Reporters…
Read MoreFederal cases shrouded in secrecy
Michael J. Sniffen and John Solomon of the Associated Press used court records to show that despite the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of public trials, nearly all records are being kept secret for more than 5,000 defendants who completed their journey through the federal courts over the past three years. The investigation found that most of…
Read MoreRetrofits offer limited earthquake protection
Thomas Peele and Jessica Guynn of Contra Costa Times found that despite houses being retrofitted to keep them safe during an earthquake, less than a third of the houses inspected would survive a major earthquake. In an investigation of 35 retrofitted houses, the newspaper found that in 24 of the 35 homes , residents might…
Read MoreWash. court records improperly sealed
Ken Armstrong, Justin Mayo and Steve Miletich of The Seattle Times used court records to show that since 1990, at least 420 civil suits have been sealed in King County, Wa. “These sealed records hold secrets of potential dangers in our medicine cabinets and refrigerators; of molesters in our day-care centers, schools and churches; of…
Read MoreJuvenile crimes treated harshly in Colorado
Miles Moffeit and Kevin Simpson of The Denver Post found Colorado has one of the harshest systems in the country for handling juveniles in the adult criminal justice system, in a four-part series looking at teen crimes. Prosecutors, wielding broad discretionary powers found in only 14 other states, convicted kids in 1,244 cases since 1998.…
Read MoreStates progress in reform of lobbying laws
Leah Rush and David Jimenez of The Center for Public Integrity report that 24 states have worked to strengthen or improve electronic disclosure systems since the Center’s 2003 report, “Hired Guns.” Meanwhile, federal lobbying disclosure laws have not changed in the past eight years. Political scandals, in many cases, were the catalyst for changes in…
Read MoreCounty officials surf Internet during public meetings
Garrett Therolf and Matthew Waite of St. Petersburg Times used Internet records to show that three Pasco commissioners visited numerous Web sites during commission meetings over the past three years. The investigation found personal use of county computers has gotten rank-and-file county employees fired. “Like many other workplaces, the county uses software to track employees…
Read More