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 "border protection" ...
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Need to Know: Crossing the Line at the Border Parts 1 & 2
Few, if any, pieces published or broadcast in 2012 had as much impact as “Crossing the Line at the Border,” a joint project of the weekly PBS newsmagazine, “Need to Know,” and the Nation Institute that was in the best tradition of American investigative journalism. Within days of its broadcast, 16 members of Congress demanded that the U.S. Justice Department investigate the killing of Anastasio Hernandez Rojas, a 42-year-old Mexican whose death at the hands of U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents was detailed in our report. A few months later, a U.S. attorney in convened a federal grand jury. It is currently considering criminal charges in the case. And months after that, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said the incident had prompted it to launch a full-scale review of its use of force. Hernandez Rojas had a fatal heart attack shortly after being subdued by agents, beaten, and shot with a Taser gun at the San Ysidro border crossing on May 28th, 2010. His death was largely ignored until the "Need to Know” team, in partnership with the Investigative Fund of the Nation Institute, unearthed never-before-seen eyewitness video of the incident.
Tags: U.S. Justice Department; border; killing; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; U.S. Department of Homeland Security; Taser
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Identity Evil
"Identity Evil" is an in-depth look at a violent fake document cartel operating in states across the country. The cartel is the largest and most sophisticated fake id ring federal investigators have ever encountered. They were funneling millions of dollars from U.S. cities south of the border into Mexico. The cartel became synonymous with murder and torture as they sought to protect their turf from rival gangs and enforce discipline within their own organization. Using eyewitness accounts, federal wiretaps, and interviews with victim’s families, investigative reporter A.J. Lagoe and photojournalist Ben Arnold take viewers inside the cartel and document the violence that would prove to be their undoing.
Tags: Fake ID; federal wiretaps; violence; fake document cartel
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Gangster Rep
Federal agents and officers hired to protect the U.S-Mexico border too often succumb to the temptation of fast, easy money, sex and power.
Tags: Border protection; Mexico; Smugglers
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Honey Laundering
"The story documented how the government has failed to stem the flow of banned honey imports into this country, despite tightened border security and growing concerns about food safety."
Tags: organic; tariff; border protection; Mike Ingalls; transshipping; importer; launder
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Bugs on the Border
The Department of Homeland Security's screening for foreign nationals entering the U.S. was crippled for about five hours due to a computer security failure. However, they claimed that the problem was a result of glitches, not a virus although a Morocco-born computer worm had actually been the cause of the computer failure. It entered the system when government administrators had delayed installing a security patch. “The stories provided a concrete example of the management issues and technical problems surrounding US-VISIT – a lynchpin of the United States’ border protection efforts.â€
Tags: computer security; computer worm; computer virus; Microsoft Office; security patch; US-VISIT; Homeland Security; national security; screening foreign nationals
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Harvest of Women: The True Story About the Murders of Girls and Women in Juarez, Mexico (1993-2005)
Author Diana Washington Valdez examines the circumstances behind the approximately 470 deaths of girls and women between the years of 1993 and 2005 in the border city of Juarez, Mexico. Her investigation discusses the brutality with which many of the victims were murdered, and the inability of local law enforcement to properly investigate these killings. Various law enforcement authorities undercounted the tally of dead by about 100, tried to blame the crimes on scapegoats, ignored viable suspects and "rejected or minimized information and leads provided by the FBI in El Paso, Texas." Investigations were further hindered by the fact the police and military were involved with the Juarez drug cartel, which "has operations in all the places where similar murders were committed during the past six years." Members of the Mexican government "protected prominent people involved in some of the murders and hid the findings of previous investigations. Therefore, it is unlikely the case will ever be completely solved, and the killers brought to justice.
Tags: Murder; murder of women; brutal murder; mutilated victims; mutilation; rape; drug cartel; government corruption; law enforcement corruption; unsolved murder
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Citizenship For Sale
Reporters from WTVJ-TV went undercover to witness a Florida man, Audie Watson, in the process of selling memberships in the Little Shell Band of the Pembina Nation. Watson claims the documents he sells for $1,500 allow purchasers to enter the United States legally. Reporters confronted Watson, and he agreed to be interviewed on camera. The series also showed interviews with people who had been arrested trying to cross the border with documents sold by Watson. Although Watson is now being investigated by state and federal officials and is currently on probation in Florida for an unrelated pyramid scheme conviction, his operation has not been shut down as of January 2007.
Tags: Fraud; Native Americans; Latinos; migrant workers; undercover investigations; Customs and Border Protection; Special Agent Zachary Mann; Ron DeLorme; Reginald Thabuteau; Universal Service Dedicated to God; Chippewa; Homeland Security
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The Teck Caminco Series
This story looks at pollution problems in river Columbia. Trail B.C., a smelter poured factory wastes into the Columbia river. This river flows across the border to Canada where the law regarding toxic wastes are not very stringent. Recent investigations revealed that the toxic wastes in the river are causing harm to the marine life in the area. This story investigates the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's efforts to enforce restrictions on the smelter owner Teck Cominco Ltd. and force them to clean the area.
Tags: Trail B.C.; British Columbia; Canadian pollution laws; Environmental Protection Agency; EPA; Columbia river; pollution on Columbia river; marine life due to water pollution; Teck Cominco Ltd.
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Borderline Terror
This story deals with investigating federal plans to protect the Vermont/Canada border from terrorists crossing into the U.S. By talking to customs officials in the U.S. and Canada, News 7 found that the 2 lakes in Vermont that border Canada are not monitored for half of the year. So there is nothing stopping illegal immigrants from swimming or boating to the United States. The investigation also found that the atmosphere at large border stations is more strict when compared to smaller border stations.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; FOI; Canadian National Security Intelligence Report; immigration; immigration policy; customs; customs officials; terrorism; Canada; Department of Homeland Security; illegal immigrants; Vermont border; Canada border; U.S. Department of Immigration
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Border Camera Breakdown
An investigation by KIRO-TV revealed that "a new high-tech security camera system, protecting the Northern U.S. Border, fails to work on a regular basis. (KIRO-TV) obtained classified documents and used multiple confidential sources to verify something the Border Patrol wanted badly to keep secret. In addition (KIRO-TV) discovered that tax money spent on the border camera system is making its way back to the family of a U.S. Congressman.
Tags: homeland security; September 11; U.S. Borders; Canada; Border Patrol; TAPE; TRANSCRIPT