The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "backgrounding" ...
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Hospital at Risk
My investigation of the Minnesota Security Hospital, a state-run facility that provides psychiatric treatment to nearly 400 adults deemed "mentally ill and dangerous," uncovered high rates of violence and injuries of employees and patients at the facility, a critical shortage of psychiatrists, and widespread confusion among employees about what to do when a patient becomes violent. I found that much of confusion was the result of the abrasive, threatening management style of head administrator David Proffitt, who was hired in 2011 to reform the facility. I began investigating Proffitt and found he was hired without a basic background check. I uncovered many troubling details from Proffitt's past, including domestic violence, a PhD from a now-defunct online degree mill, a forced resignation from his previous job as the administrator of a private psychiatric hospital in Maine, and other failings. The state ordered Proffitt to resign and the Minnesota legislative auditor began an audit of the department's hiring practices. The assistant commissioner of the Department of Human Services who led the hiring search also resigned. The governor proposed $40 million in renovations to address safety concerns. Regulators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration visited the facility for the first time in 21 years. The facility also implemented new training for employees to reduce violence. My investigation of the facility continues.
Tags: Psychiatrists; domestic violence; injuries
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RGJ: ATF/US Attorney Rift
A months-long Reno Gazette-Journal investigation found that after Reno’s chief U.S. Attorney told local ATF agents that her office would not prosecute their cases until certain unnamed “issues” were resolved, most of the agents transferred to new jobs outside Nevada, leaving Reno vulnerable to gun violence. The investigation found that the federal prosecutors dismissed or refused more than a dozen cases involving violent criminals. The RGJ probe also revealed that dozens of people who bought guns and later failed background checks were allowed to keep the guns because the rift emptied the Reno ATF office of the very agents who are tasked with retrieving those guns. The RGJ series led to an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and an independent review of the dropped cases. It also sparked Congressional action.
Tags: Department of Justice; guns; gun violence
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Hatred At Home
A comprehensive exploration of the prosecution of three domestic terrorists from Columbus, Ohio, featuring a detailed look at the investigations that led to their arrests and background on the Bush administration's war on domestic terror.
Tags: terrorists; ohio; bush; bush administration
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Guns in America & The ATF's "Fast and Furious" Experiment
The year-long investigation exposed myriad lapses and loopholes in the nation's gun laws and regulations that have fueled the drug
Tags: guns; NRA; ATF; National Instant Criminal Background Check System
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Guns in America & The ATF's "Fast and Furious" Experiment
The year-long investigation exposed myriad lapses and loopholes in the nation's gun laws and regulations that have fueled the drug
Tags: guns; NRA; ATF; National Instant Criminal Background Check System
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All Is Not Forgiven
The investigation found that reforms promised by the Vatican after the priest sex abuse scandal were ignored. Only when confronted with the findings of the investigation did the Archdiocese of Los Angeles admit that its background check of priests did not go beyond reviewing a letter from a former superior.
Tags: sex abuse; priests; Vatican; Catholic Church
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Abuse of the Badge?
A Sheriff's Deputy has long been accused of sexual assault, coercion, manipulation and extortion but there was never enough evidence to back up the claims. This series compiles months of background investigation, interviews with other members of law enforcement and testimony from multiple alleged victims.
Tags: sexual assault; extortion; police; coercion; Alabama Bureau of Investigation; badge
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Sex offender, other felons ran camps for homeless kids
This investigation "found that Palm Beach County officials paid a convicted child molester, drug dealers, thieves and other people with criminal records nearly half a million dollars in public money to run summer camps for homeless, foster and impoverished children during the past three years."
Tags: child safety; sex offender; criminal records; child care; criminal background; camp; child welfare
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The Mayor and the Money
Campaign finance reports of the Shreveport Mayor suggested that the campaign finance laws had been broken. Anonymous contributions, multiple entries for the same donation, donors that circumvented laws on contribution limits, and donors with questionable backgrounds were found in the reports.
Tags: election; mayor; contribution limit; campaign contribution; donor
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DMN Investigates/Rick Perry
The Dallas Morning News investigated the background of Texas governor,Rick Perry, as he sought re-election for a third term. The reporters showed that the state had given more than $16 million taxpayer dollars to high tech companies with investors or officers who were large campaign donors to Perry.
Tags: corruption; elections; re-election; campaign; campaign contributions