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 "violence in prisons" ...
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Detroit Free Press: Free to Kill
“Free to Kill,” a seven-month Detroit Free Press investigation, found the Michigan Department of Corrections failed to properly supervise some of the most violent of the state’s roughly 70,000 offenders under its watch. A total of 88 parolees and probationers were suspected, arrested or convicted in 95 murders between Jan. 1, 2010, and Aug. 31, 2011. The number nearly doubled from 2010 to 2011 -- from 21 to 38. The series also revealed that dozens of offenders weren't outfitted with court-ordered electronic tethers, and others weren't sent back to prison for new crimes or failed drug tests.
Tags: Department of Corrections; violence; criminals; drug tests
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"Prison Predator"
Overcrowding in California's 33 prisons has led to inmate violence, death and an alarming lack of accountability among prisons workers. In the past year, Lancaster state prison has seen two deaths as a result of inmate violence. In both cases, officials have keep quiet. A federal court ruling has asked California prison officials to relieve the overcrowding by releasing 40,000 inmates, though the ruling has been met by resistance by the governor and other politicians.
Tags: Lancaster; California prisons; inmate violence; jail violence; Greg Thomas; Cayenne Byrd; California Department of Corrections
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I Lit the Fire: Jared Petrovich Admits His Role in the Killing of John Chamberlain. But why did he target the gay?
These four articles probed the culture of violence at tTheo Lacy Men's Jail in Orange, CA, beginning with an exclusive interview of Jared Petrovich, the accuse ringleader of the Oct. 5, 2006 murder of John Chamberlain, an inmate suspected of child molestation who was brutally beated inside the jail. That story included combined interviews with Petrovich and other inmates and guards at the facility with transcripts and notes of interviews with inmates and guards that the reporter obtained from lawyers representing inmates, including Petrovich, who were charged in the attack. The article contained allegations that Deputy Kevin Taylor, a prison guard who was never charged in the crime, told Petrovich that Chamberlain was a child molester, and that Taylor routinely use inmates like Petrovich to enforce prison rules and mete out punishment to various inmates. Petrovich provided an example of this behavior that I did not include in my original story, alleging that Taylor had known about--and approved--a previous beating of an inmate in Sept. 2006. He only knew the inmate's first name--Mark--but claimed the inmate had been a guitarist for the rock band Kiss. He claimed another inmate, nicknamed "Sick Dog" had witnessed Taylor being informed of the planned attack and, after it was carried out, rewarding the inmates with sack lunches. Through a California Public Records Act request, the reporter obtained the Sheriff Department's jail file on the beaten inmate, Mark Leslie Norton, aka Mark St. John of the rock band Kiss, and found information which corroborated Petrovich's account of the incident, and obtained his death certificate. St. John died of a brain hemorrhage several months after being released.
Tags: prison beatings; rock band Kiss; California; prisoner brutality; bribe; prison regulation
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Unit 32: Mississippi Supermax
Unit 32, the super-maximum security facility at Mississippi State Penitentiary, has been the subject of scrutiny due to claims of harsh conditions for inmates. This review of the current conditions showed that Unit 32 had become "a dumping ground for the violent, the mentally ill, prison gang leaders, and newly arrived prisoners." "The stories continued through a summer of shocking violence as gang tensions within the unit overflowed."
Tags: Unit 32; Mississippi State Penitentiary; conditions of inmates; violence in prisons; metally ill;
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Maryland Corrections Reforms Yield Mixed Results
"This story covers problems with violence in the Maryland corrections system, which saw four inmates and two officers killed in 2006 and three inmates killed in 2007. An analysis of state records showed that despite a pledge by Gov. Martin O'Malley to reform the system and the closing of a notorious prison, violence was still rampant in many prisons. Overall, serious attacks on officers declined in 2007, but the rate of inmate-on-inmate violence was similar to that of 2006, considered one of the worst in Maryland history."
Tags: prisons; violence; corrections system; inmate violence; prison reform
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Nuestra Familia, Our Family
An investigative documentary film about the prison gang's in California and the effect they have on Latino families. Interviews inside prison and with family members outside explain haunting lifestyle that emerges from gang life. The documentary focuses on a father who turns his life around, while his son's involvement in the Nuestra Family gang becomes deeper.
Tags: gangs; prison; jail; organized crime; violence; latino; hispanic
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Locked Down: Gangs in the Supermax
The documentary investigates the links between criminal groups based in prisons and street gangs, showing how California's harsh prison policies have contributed to the growth of gangs.
Tags: crime; violence; gangs; California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; prison; jail
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Prison Zip Codes
This investigation by WSMV looks at the trend of parolees, prisoners, their respective zip codes, and the continuous cycle of violence that occurs when they're released into the same environment. The trend shows that certain zip codes with hundreds of parolees also tend to have the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases and HIV. Through their analysis, reporters at WSMV discovered that many of these parolees have no choice but to return to these high-crime neighborhoods with cheap housing due to their criminal past. "So when parolees return to these areas, they are exposed to crime again and get caught up in a cycle of violence."
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Where Hope is Locked Away: California's Youth Prisons. A Mercury News Special Report.
This series examines California's failing youth prison system. The state pledged that all youth would receive counseling and rehabilitative treatment, but it seems like the system is too flawed to keep those promises. Now, tear gas, gang violence, and fear are much more common than progress. The reporters specifically focused on five issues: education, treatment, sentencing, parole and alternatives. They compare the California system to better ones in Texas and Missouri.
Tags: Youth Authority; juvenile delinquents; abuse; sex offenders; therapy; mental health; rehabilitation; drugs
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A dangerous place: Assisted living in Virginia
This 18-month investigation revealed a troubled and worsening record of care at assisted living homes, including avoidable injuries and deaths of residents and poor oversight by state regulators. The Post found that many of the residents were sent to homes after years of institutionalization or even out of prison, a combustible mix that led to violence, sexual assaults and homicide. Weak licensing laws and poor enforcement allowed facilities deemed unsafe by regulators to remain open years later.