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 "conflict attorneys" ...
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Local officials are likely to profit from fracking in Southern Tier
Local government officials have been lobbying the state to the controversial oil and gas extraction process known as fracking. But when they spoke at public hearings and pushed in other forums, were they just representing their communities, or did they have more at stake? In a four-month investigation, SUNY New Paltz students reviewed thousands of public records in two states. The investigation found more than 30 locally elected officials who have been outspoken proponents for fracking. Public records and additional examinations identified about 20 percent of those with more than political philosophy at stake — the chance to gain personally and financially. To open government advocates such as Common Cause, these instances raise concerns about transparency and conflicts of interest among locally elected officials. About six months after publication, and after further moves by local officials to press the state to approve fracking, the state attorney general has launched inquiries into whether local officials have violated conflicts of interest.
Tags: Oil; gas; oil and gas extraction; fracking
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The Body Shop
Questionable hiring, misidentified bodies, sexual harassment charges and refusal to provide autopsies to defense attorneys are a few of the many problems facing the Adams County Coroner's office. Jim Hibbard, who heads the office, was elected to his position, but had a history of conflict as a former police officer. He appears to have brought that conflict to the coroner's office in the form of sexual harassment, ruined evidence and regulatory violations.
Tags: Coroner; Adams County; autopsy; medical examiner; Jim Hibbard; sexual harassment; identity; defense; police; problems;
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Conflicted Justice
The series found "major problems with a little-known but significant aspect of indigent defense in Nevada. When two or more indigent defendants are charge in the same case, each defendant's testimony might implicate another. To avoid conflicts of interest that would occur if co-defendants were represented by a county public defender, that office represents only one, and private lawyers are hired by judges to represent the rest. Alan Maimon's reporting revealed that some conflict attorneys claimed to work more than 24 hours in a single day. Some spent excessive time on certain cases that paid a higher hourly rate, and tended to hastily offer guilty pleas on cases that did not pay as well."
Tags: courts; legal; justice; conflict attorneys; criminal defense; court corruption; lawyers; civil defense
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Turmoil at UMDNJ
This extensive nine-month investigation into the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey first began with a "mysterious check made out to a dead man." What resulted were more than 70 stories uncovering years of corruption, political patronage, conflicts of interest, millions of dollars in no-bid contracts and bonuses for administrators and more. At the end of the investigation into UMDNJ, the U.S. Attorney ordered a federal monitor to take over--the first time ever that a state university had to be taken over by the federal government.
Tags: fraud; Medicare; Medicaid; corruption; James McGreevey; contracts
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Money Matters: Contributions & Contracts
The Cleveland Plain Dealer investigated "the 'pay to play' practices of Ohio Treasurer Joe Deters and state attorney general Betty Montgomery. (The newspaper) tied two-thirds of the $4 million Deters has raised since 1998 to people who get work from his office. (The Plain Dealer) found that the treasurer was paying some brokers who gave him campaign contributions higher fees than they had requested. And their performance, overall, lagged behind the brokers used by other states. Deters also was using the powerful Hamilton County GOP, which he co-chaired, to launder campaign contributions. Private lawyers working from Attorney General Montgomery also felt it was necessary to give to her campaign to get work."
Tags: Ohio; Attorney General; Treasurer; Joe Deters; Betty Montgomery; conflicts of interest; campaign finance
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Swimming in Trouble
The mayor of Pompano Beach, Bill Griffin, maintains cozy relationships with lobbyists and big-time developers. Norman follows the connections through citizen complaints and interviews with the players themselves. The result was a State Attorney's Office investigation into the mayor and a mayor-at-large initiative put to the public.
Tags: conflict of interest; developers; zoning; city government; lobbyists
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East Baton Rouge Parish Juvenile Drug Court Program
The Advocate reports on how federal grants have been recklessly spent by the East Baton Rouge Parish Juvenile Justice Court on high executive salaries. The stories reveal that the Straight and Narrow Drug Treatment Center, one of about 30 drug courts in the state, has failed to effectively supervise the drug-addicted children who graduated from the program. The investigation finds that the key players behind the faulty drug treatment programs - including two judges, an attorney and his roommate - are entangled in bizarre legal accusations of sexual harassment and racially motivated attacks.
Tags: courts; minorities; racial problems; drugs; federal funds; drug addicts; sexual harassment; public records; conflicts of interests
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Friends of the Court
A Miami Herald investigation of the Broward County legal system revealed that county judges only hire a select group of private lawyers to represent poor people who can't afford their own attorneys. "Unlike other South Florida courts that evenly spread the work to a large pool of qualified lawyers, Broward judges maintain absolute discretion over who gets appointed when the public defender's office can't represent a defendant because of a conflict." The Herald discovered that judges often select their friends or election contributors to be public defenders.
Tags: courts; Broward County; money; elections; legal system; conflict of interest
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No title (id: 13738)
Deputy Tampa Police Chief John Cuesta was a 17 year veteran of the department. His police record was excellent. While working on the force, Cuesta also became an attorney. WFTS repeatedly found Cuesta spending hours and hours at a private law office in the middle of his tax funded work day. On his police vacation time Cuesta was handling a case in court which could conflict with his police position. Fellow police officers came to WFTS to publicly claim for the first time ever that they had often seen Cuesta shortchange his police duties while attending law school. (August 7, 8, 13; Sept. 6, 1996)
Tags: Cochran Kalthoff Mahan Jones et al Contest entry TAPE No script
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No title (id: 12678)
After six months of investigation, the Bay Guradian revealed how new San Francisco mayor Willie Brown should be legally prohibited from acting on many pivotal issues facing the city, all because of conflicts of interest accumulated during 30 years as a state assembly leader, and simultaneously, a practicing corporate and personal attorney. (Aug. 23 - 29, 1995)
Tags: Curran CAR Recuse me Contest entry Local politics Government 13 pgs.