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 "derailment" ...
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Banking on Fear
Carter reports how "federal banking regulatory agencies have been likened by critics to runaway freight trains --derailing any individuals or financial institutions in their path..."
Tags: regulation; federal laws; banks; financial institutions
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Dressed to kill
Business Week tells the story of how one of the dot-com companies, Critical Path, "wound up being accused of accounting irregularities." The article reveals that "greed, colliding personalities and a long-shot bet made with shareholder money ... derailed the promising company." Critical Path eventually became the target of an SEC probe, and shelled out $17 million to settle shareholder suits.
Tags: business; Internet; Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); stocks and bonds; investments; investors; equity
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Death Row Justice Derailed: The Failure of the Death Penalty in Illinois
A Chicago Tribune investigation of all 285 death penalty cases in Illinois since capital punishment was reinstated revealed "a system so riddled with faulty evidence, unscrupulous trial tactics and legal incompetence that justice has been forsaken." Among the investigation's findings: "at least 33 times, a defendant sentenced to die was represented by an attorney who had been disbarred or suspended" and "at least 35 times, a defendant sentenced to die was black and the jury that determined guilt or sentencing was all white."
Tags: courts; death row; Illinois; misconduct capital punishment racism criminal justice system DNA evidence bias unprofessional incompetence jailhouse informants police torture forced confessions appeals
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The Sturgeon Disaster: Twenty Years Later
This narrative retells the story of a chemical spill in Sturgeon, Missouri, twenty years later: the cleanup and the aftermath, and takes a look at how the lives of the townspeople were affected. "Cancer rates and other health problems in the town are abnormally high, according to many residents and one local doctor... Others are not convinced the chemicals had any lasting effect. The state Department of Health has never investigated concerns about the number of cancer cases in the area."
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No title (id: 13768)
American Journal investigates railroad safety and discovers unsafe train tracks across America, even in places where accidents have happened before. Journalists walked the tracks in five states with certified track inspectors. In just about every location, the inspectors found serious defects that could lead to derailments. (May 16, 1996)
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No title (id: 13498)
Emerge magazine investigates the system of "tracking" in American schools which almost always places white students on upper-level, "gifted" tracks and black or Hispanic students on "dumb" tracks. Those on gifted tracks receive more personal attention and encouragement from instructors. Meanwhile, on the "dumb" track, minority students have less interesting, less challenging classes to choose from and lower expectations. (Sept. 1996)
Tags: Daniels Derailing a system Education Discrimination Opportunity 5 pgs.
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No title (id: 13431)
The Victoria Advocate investigates the derailment of four Southern Pacific train tank cars containing more than 15,000 gallons of toxic chlorine. Although there were no spills, the article finds that Southern Pacific rail lines are rife with splintered rails, rotting crossties and loose or missing spikes.
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No title (id: 13157)
A Post-Gazette series dissects the sudden fall of the world's preeminent researcher of breast cancer, Bernard Fisher, and the derailing of the promising nationwide research program he directed for more than 25 years. Story after story in the press related how scientific misconduct had been discovered in the research and many women became sceptical and angry. The series discovered that the stories were exagerated and the research is now legitimate. (Dec. 24, 27 - 29, 1995
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No title (id: 12633)
The series revealed the dismal preformance of the Oswego County District Attorney's office. Victims of crime repeatedly watched defendants go free as trial deadlines slipped past or other procedural mistakes derailed cases. The Post-Standard examined the poor record of prosecutors and explained the reasons for their preformance. (June 28, 29 & 30, 1995)
Tags: Scanlon Lighty CAR Elusive Justice Contest entry Courts 26 pgs.
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No title (id: 12627)
The project examined six years of Tulsa homicides in a six-part series. The newspaper tracked killings and defendants through the investigation, court and prison. The series found that cases are shaped and sometimes derailed by a fragmented system of competing interests, personnel turnover, taxing caseloads and glutted prisons. (Nov. 12 - 17, 1995)
Tags: Fallis CAR How we deal with homocide: murder among us Contest entry 38 pgs.