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 "innocent" ...
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Justice in the Balance
The investigation documents the occurrences of federal prosecutors violating the law to win cases while the Justice Department looks the other way. Rarely are the prosecutors punished, and often times their abuses set guilty people free and put innocent people in jail.
Tags: Justice Department; prosecutor; federal prosecutor; violation; federal court
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Investigation of Louisville Metro Police Det. Marlowe
The reporters find that one local detective accused at least a dozen defendants of crimes they did not commit. Many of these defendants could not possibly have committed the crimes because they were in jail or out of the city at the time. Many of the accused served jail time for days or even months before they were exonerated.
Tags: exonerate; detective; police; criminal justice; innocent
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Did these women molest two girls?
The series examines the evidence presented at the trials that convicted four women of sexually assaulting two girls in the 1990s. The story documents the lapses in police work, the flawed credibility of the accusers, a prosecutor's exploitation of anti-gay stereotypes and more.
Tags: guilty; innocent; sexual assault; trial; evidence
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"Justice in the Balance"
USA Today started investigating the topic of potentially corrupt federal prosecutors after the case against Sen. Ted Stevens was dropped. Reporters looked at "tens of thousands"of "routine cases" that were filed in federal court to locate any mishandling of the proceedings. The outcome was startling. Federal prosecutors have "violated the law to win convictions," setting guilty people free and landing "innocent people in jail."
Tags: Ted Stevens; prosecutors; U.S. Justice Department; Nino Lyons; Lexis; PACER; database; FOIA
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Fatal Care
“At least 22 children died from 2004 to 2008 despite clear warning signs from the Bureau of Child Welfare they were at risk”. A number of reasons were to blame for the deaths of these innocent children. The reasons include: workers making these “fatal mistakes” were reassigned instead of being fired, the parents mistreating their children were never punished, and secrecy in the Bureau persisted.
Tags: Milwaukee; county; kids; preventable; social service; social workers; turmoil; caseworkers; guardians
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Blood of Their Brothers, The Border Trilogy
After three policemen and a civilian were executed and beheaded, the investigation into the mayoral regime began. This investigation uncovered a multitude of problems and scandals. Also, it revealed the three policemen and the civilian were honest and innocent. The series "explicitly spelled out the machinations of violence that's claimed more than 10,000 lives since 2006."
Tags: Rosarito; Mexico; conflict; police; law enforcement; mayor; cops; murder; crime; mafia; government
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"Beyond the Verdict"
After a minivan struck a school bus causing a wreck that killed four children, Olga Franco was accused of driving the van, convicted and sentenced to prison. Franco, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, maintains her innocence and says her then-boyfriend was operating the vehicle; however, he was not found in the vehicle when authorities arrived to the scene. The KMSP team investigates her claims to determine if the wrong person is in prison for the terrible tragedy.
Tags: Cottonwood MN; Olga Franco; Shakopee; Francisco Mendoza; DNA; illegal immigration
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Believing the Children
This story takes a look at an investigation, which took place in 1991. In 1991, satanic daycare abuse was becoming a national panic and many parents were in frenzy over this. So when Fran and Danny Keller were charged with sexually assaulting a child, everyone just believed it did happen. But many years later, the Kellers maintain their innocence while serving their time in prison. This story reinvestigates the case by retracing the original prosecution and the original police investigation report. As well as utilizing some fresh interviews from the central participants of the case, these include the Kellers themselves.
Tags: daycare; child abuse; sexual assault; prison; crime; innocent; physical; satanic; parents; children; kids
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"Innocents Betrayed"
More than 250 children under the watch of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services died during the span of 19 months. The Times found that most of the deaths spurred little investigation even though many "involved faulty case management."
Tags: Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services; child services; child abuse
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Guilty Until Proven Innocent
"A new Florida law allows people who are innocent of crimes to receive $50,000 for each year they wrongfully spent in prison."
Tags: conviction; James Joseph Richardson; court ruling; Arcadia; case; overturn;