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 "federal records" ...
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Trail of the Gun
After a wave of gun violence in Seattle, KING 5 examined some of the most basic techniques that police use to solve gun crimes. By analyzing documents received through public records requests the television station learned that most large police departments in Washington state are not conducting routine ballistics tests on the so-called “crime guns” they seize from suspects and crime scenes. This means that guns, that could hold clues to unsolved crimes, are sitting right under investigators’ noses in their own evidence rooms. The investigative series "Trail of the Gun" also unearthed the results of federal firearms “traces”, which police use to determine how a gun ended up in the hands of a criminal. These trace results revealed that a large number of Seattle’s crime guns came from an unexpected place. After the stories aired, several large police departments pledged to begin ballistics testing programs for their crime guns. The Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms offered to assist local police agencies to test every gun in their evidence rooms. And, the feds unveiled a warrant targeting one of the gun dealers identified in the series.
Tags: Guns; gun crimes; police
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Cracking the Codes
Cracking the Codes documented how thousands of medical professionals have steadily billed Medicare for more complex and costly health care over the past decade – adding $11 billion or more to their fees – despite little evidence elderly patients required more treatment. The series also uncovered a broad range of costly billing errors and abuses that have plagued Medicare for years – from confusion over how to pick proper payment codes to apparent overcharges in medical offices and hospital emergency rooms. The findings strongly suggest these problems, known as “upcoding,” are worsening amid lax federal oversight and the government-sponsored switch from paper to electronic medical records.
Tags: Medicare; health care; billing; medical offices; hospitals; government; medical records
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As Mine Protections Fail, Black Lung Cases Surge
A joint investigation by NPR and the Center for Public Integrity mined government databases and analyzed together for the first time ever, coal dust enforcement records and black lung occurrence data. We compiled what appear to be the most comprehensive accounts to date of an unexpected reemergence of black lung, sharp increases among younger miners, rapid progression to the most serious stages, widespread fraudulent coal dust testing by industry, weaknesses and loopholes in federal regulations, and ineffective enforcement by federal regulators. We asked Ken Ward Jr., the veteran coal industry reporter at the Charleston Gazette, to contribute web and print stories about the history of failed government regulation, as well as fraudulent coal dust testing specifically at the Upper Big Branch mine, where 29 miners died in an explosion fueled by coal dust in 2010. Our reporting prompted the Labor Department to establish an internal team to review the agency's enforcement of coal dust regulations, according to internal agency e-mails obtained by NPR. Federal regulators stepped up coal dust enforcement, targeting mines with a history of violations. Members of Congress cited the series in calling for tougher regulations, and one group launched a petition drive demanding action.
Tags: mining; miners; black lung disease; coal dust; government
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Cracks in the Empire: Inside Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson, the gold standard of corporate America for its single-minded devotion to its customers, is fending off federal, state and consumer allegations that the company harmed and cheated the ill. The Press found that the New Brunswick, NJ-based copmany set its sights in the last decade on making record profits but at a high cosst. Its main OTC pain reliever company was shut down in part for being too dirty. Thousands of hip replacement patients say the device failed inside their bodies, causing them great pain.
Tags: Johnson & Johnson; pain relievers; drugs; pharmaceuticals
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Documenting Russian Federation Corruption
With documentation from several secret bank accounts and offshore corporate records, Barron's Dow Jones traced how Russia's most powerful officials have looted their nation in cahoots with cops, gangsters, and oligarchs. They show how a worldwide network of money laundering professionals that facilitates that plunder, while also abetting other global mischief like drug smuggling and arms trafficking.
Tags: corruption; drug smuggling; arms trafficking; Russia
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White Mayor's Burden
In the summer of 2011, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced he was starting the Young Man's Initiative, a multi-million dollar public-private partnership to "help" young black and Latino male New Yorkers. What he neglected to mention in the rollout was that under his tenure, New York City has arrested record numbers of black and Latino young men using the controversial "stop and frisk" technique, has suspended record numbers of black and Latino men from schools, and has actively fought a federal lawsuit to make the Fire Department comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Tags: Civil Rights Act of 1964; Michael Bloomberg; Mayor; New York City; Young Man's Initiative Black; Latino; Fire Department
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Grave Mistakes
An investigation showing how the database of deceased Americans created in 1980 under the Freedom of Information Act accidentally lists thousands of Americans as deceased, suffering frozen bank accounts, refused credit cards, denied student and mortgage loans, or arrests for suspected identity theft. It also exposes how identity thieves have learned to use the filed to commit numerous acts of identity theft for tax fraud.
Tags: identity theft; deceased; federal records; tax fraud
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Sex Offenders
State and federal authorities have lost track of 100,000 of the nation's 700,000 convicted sex offenders. Using a Freedom of Information Act request, the reporter found that only four states have complied with a law requiring states to keep uniform records on sex offenders.
Tags: sex offender; records; FOIA; sex
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Massey Mine Explosion Investigation
Immediately following a deadly mine explosion in West Virginia, CBS News began digging through records from the Mine Safety and Health Administration and found the mine had a shoddy safety record. In fact, on the day of the explosion, the mine's owner, Massey Energy, was cited for violating two federal safety rules.
Tags: Massey Energy; mine; mine explosion; safety; Upper Big Branch Mine; West Virginia; Mine Safety Health Administration
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Fugitive Sex Offenders
State and federal authorities have lost track of 100,000 of the nation's 700,000 convicted sex offenders. This report examines the sex offender oversight that was supposed to have been addressed by a landmark 2006 law requiring states to keep uniform records on sex offenders. Only four states complied with this law.
Tags: sex offense; oversight; FOIA; sex offender tracking; AWOL