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 "police cameras" ...
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Black and Blue: Why does America's richest black suburb have some of the country's most brutal cops?
According to the article;"The cops in Maryland's second most populous county (Prince George's County) had a reputation for turning routine traffic stops into Rodney King incidents sans video camera." Article explains why the suburb has become known for its brutal cops.
Tags: police
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Trafficked for the Military
A hidden-camera investigation by WJW-TV revealed that U.S. military police and courtesy patrol officers were protecting South Korean brothels, where indentured women were "forced to work as prostitutes serving American soldiers."
Tags: U.S. military; prostitutes; Americans; Soldiers; sexual crimes; sex; abuse; sex slaves; South Korean; South Korea; women; indentured; courtesy patrol officers; military police; TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; Top 20 Category
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Traffic School Cheats
A WTVJ-TV hidden camera investigation reveals that Maurin Gonzalez, a local traffic school manager and Dan Cordones, a legal assistant, sell traffic school certificates to driving offenders. Bad drivers who would otherwise get tickets often choose to go to traffic school to avoid getting points on their licenses. But some get a certificate without ever attending the driver improvement course.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; corruption; police; fraud; justice
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Trafficked for the Military
Using hidden camera, WJW-TV reveals that U.S. military police and courtesy patrol officers have been protecting South Korean brothels and illegal traffic of women. The trafficked women, mostly employed by massage parlors, have been forced to prostitute serving American soldiers. Virtually all women entered the US through marriages to soldiers.
Tags: human rights; prostitution; international sex slave industry; database; military bases; army; tape; transcript; Tom Renner Award Category
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Feed 5: Best of Show and Tell
1) Jennifer Kraus (WTVF-Nashville) This story exposes problems at the Nashville office of international charity "Feed the Children." In a four-month investigation, WTVF-TV's undercover cameras caught the charity's staff loading up their personal cars with donated items and taking the items home. 2) Deborah Sherman (WFXT - Boston) Costa Rican trips for child sex. Actually spoke with girls who used to get paid by American tourists for sex. Focuses on one area man charged with this crime. 3) Anna Werner, David Raziq (KHOU-Houston) KHOU-TV reports that "You're in physical pain. You need help. So you go to your doctor expecting needed relief and comfort. But what if in the process of treating you, you realize this healer's touch has become 'sexual?' That's what dozens of Houston women claimed happened to them when they were referred to a local health professional, a professional they claimed used their trust to molest and even rape them. His name is Shin Higashiura and he claimed to be a Master of Shiatsu, also known as acupressure, a Japanese massage therapy that promises health benefits...." 4) Jilda Unruh (WCCO-Minneapolis) An investigation reveals that automatic door sensors can't detect certain colors. The doors often close on elderly people, causing them harm. 5) Tom Merriman/Jeff Harris (WEWS-Cleveland) The story investigates how state-trained lifeguards perform on state beaches as compared to privately trained lifeguards on private beaches. Follows both teams though a simulation. The state team fails horribly and never recovers the dummy planted for them to rescue. 6) Jim Schaefer; Shellee Smith (WXYZ-Detroit) WXYZ-TV discovered that the leaders of Highland Park, a poor city surrounded by Detroit, had virtually ignored a major problem in the 911 emergency response system while continuing to enjoy the relatively expensive perks of their jobs. While claiming there was no money in the budget to fix the problem, the mayor leased a brand-new Lincoln with city cash. Undercover video found citizens at risk, fire fighters in danger and no one helping. 7) Drew Griffin (KCBS-Los Angeles) "The Real ConAir" Investigation reveals department of corrections transporting convicts on commercial flights. Passengers are not told who's sitting beside them. Planes are forced to land because of disturbances during the flight. A girl is sexually assaulted by one of these convicts. 8) Robb Leer; Maria Tomasch (KSTP-Minneapolis) Inmates can change their names on the taxpayer's dime. 9) Jeremy Rogalski; Bill Dutton; Gerry Lanosga; Kathleen Johnston (WTHR-Indianapolis) WTHR-TV reports that "a source mentioned to us that numerous DUI cases were being dismissed because police witnesses fail to appear in court... After we crunched a slice of our county's criminal justice data ... We found thousands of DUI cases - nearly one in ten - thrown out because cops didn't show..." 10) Wes Williams; C.J. Ward (KPNX-Phoenix) Security guards with criminal records have a "License to Steal." 11) Tony Kovaleski; Matt Goldberg (KPRC-Houston) Ninety-eight guns were discovered in schools in 10 of Houston's largest school districts -- that works out to 5,864 students per gun. 12) Phil Williams; Chris Clark (WTVF-Nashville) WTVF-TV's investigation into the backgrounds of school teachers found more than three dozen convicted felons working in Metro Nashville-Davidson County schools. 13) Chris Halsne; Kim Albro; Dave Weed (KWTV-Oklahoma City) Voters handed Oklahoma City Schools a 93 million dollar bond in 1993 to improve schools. The money is now gone, but many projects remain unfinished. KWTV-TV's investigation found millions of dollars in waste, fraud and mismanagement. 14) Laure Quinlivan; Jeff Keene; Ken Fulk; Mark Shafer; Scott Diener; Stuart Zanger (WCPO-Cincinnati) WCPO-TV's investigation "... to monitor County officials as they began spending nearly a billion dollars of taxpayer money... earmarked to build two, new sports stadiums for our city's professional sports teams, the Bengals and Red. As (the) investigation enters its third year, work on the first stadium is two-thirds complete and ground will soon break on the second. Already, our investigation has revealed broken promises, manipulation of numbers in official reports, political cronyism in contract awards, creation of 'pass-through' companies and other questionable and possibly illegal activities...." 15) Jim Barry; John Campbell; Sam Zeff; Jennifer Snell; Denise Haley; Brad Naw (WTXF-Philadelphia) After transit union strike crippled Philadelphia's bus and subway service for forty days, WTXF-TV investigated the region's transportation agency - Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. SEPTA is one of the largest and most expensive transit systems in the county. This investigation exposed a widespread culture of laziness and dishonest work habits that was allowing hundreds of buses with potentially dangerous problems out onto the street each day. 16)Darcy Spears; Kim Kruger (KVBC-Las Vegas) "Taken for a Ride". Taxi drivers getting kickbacks for taking clients to certain bars/stripclubs.
Tags: TAPE; Investigative reporting; computer-assisted reporting; IRE; FOI; CAR; no transcripts
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2002 IRE National Conference Show and Tell Tape #1,
2002 IRE National Conference (San Francisco) Show and Tell Tape #1 features the following stories: 1) Mark Greenblatt (KOAA-Colorado Springs) Knives and other weapons are brought into area schools, but local authorities do a poor job of keeping track of the infractions. 2) Joe Ducey (KRON-San Francisco) A loophole in food transportation laws in California allows small wholesalers to truck food that should be kept cold in hot vehicles without facing any penalties. 3) Anna Werner (KHOU-Houston) presents short clips of broadcasts that illustrate good use of graphics and sound. 4) Dave Savini (WMAQ-Chicago) Area firefighters and police officers are allowed to continue patrolling the streets despite DUI convictions. 5) Jim Strickland (WSB-Atlanta) The American Biographical Institute sells dubious awards like "Man of the Year" to Regular Joes for exuberant prices. 6) Dan Noyes (ABC 7-San Francisco) A local towing company illegally tows cars that have been parked for only a half hour, instead of waiting the required hour before towing. 7) Tony Kovaleski (ABC 7-Denver) Jefferson County school bus drivers are forced to drive unsafe buses. 8) Bill Sheil (Fox 8-Cleveland) A local Muslim leader is found to have an indirect tie to an organization linked to Osama Bin Laden. 9) Twenty-five clips from various broadcasts showing camera techniques. 10) Mark Lagerkvist (News 12-Long Island) Malpractice lawsuits have a statute of limitations of two year and six months. This can harm certain patients who don't know they've been injured until five or 10 years later. 11) Darcy Spears (KVBC-Las Vegas) A local lasik eye surgery clinic recommends the surgery to all its patients -- even those who shouldn't undergo the procedure. 12) Phil Williams (WTVF-Nashville, Tenn.) A local county clerk makes one of his employees buy him beer and mow his lawn. 13) Sandra Chapman (WISH-Indianapolis) A local doctor gives out highly addictive narcotics to patients without examining them. Many of her patients are simply "dopers" who've found an easy place to buy their drugs. 14) Glen Meek (KTNV-Las Vegas) The former UCLA men's soccer coach, Todd Saldana, received his undergraduate degree from a fake university. Saldana resigned after the story broke. 15) Larry Yellen (WFLD-Chicago) Security guards at a local federal building sleep on the job.
Tags: TAPE; San Francisco; conference; no transcripts; IRE
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Predator next door
A three-part News 12 investigation reports on children falling victim to sexual abuse. The first part reveals that many cases of sexual abuse occur at home by a person the child know and trusts. Many offenses go unreported because children do not talk about what happened, or are afraid to testify. Part two is based on a "surprisingly candid interview" with a convicted sex offender who admits he will never be cured. Part three is a hidden camera investigation showing how children, although taught not to go with strangers, can be easily lured to walk away from their playgrounds. An undercover police officer plays the role of the "stranger," while children's parents are watching the entire matter unfold before heir eyes.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; crime; police; prison; jail; offenders; parents; justice; crime statistics
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Prostitution Gangs Hit Houston
KPRC-TV reports on "a rare, out-of-state organization of prostitutes and their pimps" in a busy Houston neighborhood. The investigation used hidden cameras to show how the prostitutes were openly stopping traffic. The follow-up segments report on the police "massive sweep" of the area, and explain some nontraditional crackdowns used in the fight against the massive organization. "The problem is just beginning to hit cities throughout the country," the story reveals.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; crime; business; communities; hookers
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Dead or alive?
WISH-TV investigates the unsolved murder of a young black woman who was killed on a main street in Martinsville, a predominantly white Indiana town, in the 1960s. The reporters uncover the name, the date of birth and the social security number of the prime suspect from an envelope kept by the victim's family. The team finds that the suspect - James Richard Smith - whom the police never went after, had a record with the Missouri Department of Corrections. A hidden camera captures a video of the suspect, supposed to be dead for decades, disapproving a claim the police made for a long time. The report also discovers that police have taken new blood and DNA samples from the suspect.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; crime; violence; race relations; minorities; blacks; African-Americans; FOIA
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Riverboat Casinos
Inside Edition investigates the proliferation of drunken driving incidents around riverboat casinos, and finds this to be a national problem. Using hidden-camera investigating techniques, the report reveals the lax alcohol policies at the casinos, which have lead to a number of accidents. Gamblers receive drinks free of charge and as many as they want. As most of the riverboat casinos are in rural areas with few accommodations, when "drunken drivers head home...most of them head right for the highway," Inside Edition reports.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; gambling; deaths; transportation; automobiles; highways; road accidents; intoxication; police; arrests