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Welcome to IRE's roundup of the weekend’s many enterprise stories from around the country. We’ll highlight the document digging, field work and data analysis that made their way into centerpieces in print, broadcast and online from coast to coast. Coverage this week was dominated by the election, but there was some watchdog coverage to be found in other areas. In preview of the election, we've got a roundup of some of the data-driven work that's been done this campaign season.
Did we miss some? Let us know. Send us an email at web@ire.org or tweet to @IRE_NICAR. We’ll add it to the list and spread the word.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution
Atlanta police wanted helicopter replaced in 2001
"The Atlanta police helicopter that crashed Saturday night, killing two officers, was a Vietnam War-era chopper that city officials 11 years ago said had outlived its useful life."
The Indianapolis Star
Just 1 in 10 Indianapolis residents recycle. Why is that?
"Just 10 percent of households participate in curbside recycling. That means Indianapolis, which has been striving since 2008 to become 'the most sustainable city in the Midwest,' has one of the most underused recycling programs in the nation for a city its size."
The Milwuakee Journal Sentinel
With no oversight, police can ignore domestic violence laws
"Wisconsin's laws on how police must respond to domestic violence are among the most comprehensive in the country, but no one has the authority to enforce them, a Journal Sentinel investigation has found. And if the laws are ignored, there are no penalties."
The Houston Chronicle
Alleged HISD fee scheme detailed
"HISD trustee Larry Marshall voted repeatedly to award taxpayer-funded contracts to companies that hired his longtime business associate - who gave him a cut of her earnings, according to court records, deposition testimony and interviews."
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
Parking ticket abuse rampant by Rochester Police
"A month-long investigation by the Democrat and Chronicle revealed that the Police Department routinely violated its own policies by fixing tickets for officers and their friends and relatives for flimsy excuses or none at all."
The Palm Beach Post
Felons, dead people are eligible voters on final Palm Beach County roll
"Peter Costello, a felon convicted of racketeering and fraud in 1998, has no right to vote because his civil rights never have been restored.But that didn’t stop the registered Republican from casting a ballot in the Aug. 14 primary, and, he said in an interview with The Palm Beach Post, submitting an absentee ballot for Tuesday’s election."
"Despite a stunning drop in homicides in D.C., murder remains a stubborn crime to solve and prosecute. The Washington Post has reviewed nearly 2,300 slayings in the city between 2000 and 2011 and found that less than a third have led to a conviction for murder or manslaughter, although the numbers have improved in the past few years."
"According to The Post’s investigation, more than 1,000 cases remain unsolved. In a 15-month study, Cheryl Thompson individually tracked every homicide in the District between 2000 and 2011 to learn what ultimately happened to each ensuing case."
Welcome to IRE's roundup of the weekend’s many enterprise stories from around the country. We’ll highlight the document digging, field work and data
analysis that made their way into centerpieces in print, broadcast and online from coast to coast.
Did we miss some? Let us know. Send us an email at web@ire.org or tweet to @IRE_NICAR. We’ll add it to the list and spread the word.
Uncounted Casualties
The Austin American-Statesman
Scores of recent Texas war veterans have died of overdoses, suicide and vehicle crashes, a six-month Statesman investigation finds.
Majority of third-strike inmates are addicts, records show
Center for Investigative Reporting
Convicts imprisoned under California’s three strikes law are no more inclined to high-risk "criminal thinking” than other inmates, but are far more likely to be addicted to drugs and alcohol, according to data from the state prisons department.
A Betryal of Trust
The Arizona Republic
In more than 400 instances, victims of sexual assault turned to the Maricopa County Sherriff's Office, trusting detectives with wrenching details in pursuit of protection and justice. In some cases, the Sherriff's Office did little or nothing. Only now is the full impact of that inaction coming to light, as The Republic reveals what victims characterize as a betrayal of trust.
Port Authority: What's a port authority, anyway?
Investigative Newsource
Developers have drooled for years over the Port of San Diego’s Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal. But each new idea — most with a football stadium attached — has been beaten back by those who believe a rare, deep water port should remain — just that.Today, Port Authority, the latest I-Newsource/KPBS investigation, tackles the question: Are we getting the biggest bang for our considerable bucks at that terminal?
Lax controls leave Michigan's ex-cons free to kill
The Detroit Free Press
As the Michigan Department of Corrections searches for ways to manage its nearly $2-billion budget, it is releasing ex-cons into the community who are
committing a growing number of violent crimes, a Free Press investigation found.
Joseph Merlino: The mobster next door
The Miami Herald
A Mafia icon from Philadelphia has settled in Boca Raton, fresh out of prison. Miami Herald reporter Julie K. Brown examines what he might be up to now.
High-stakes tests, low-level security
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The latest installment of the paper’s coverage of school’s reveals that more cheating scandals are most likely inevitable, because states cannot ensure the integrity of their tests.
How clout keeps court cases secret
The Chicago Tribune
Cook County judges routinely have hidden hundreds of cases from public view since 2000, sealing lawsuits involving a famous chef, millionaire businessmen and even other judges
Blue Line protects off-duty cops behind the wheel
Buffalo News
Police also call it ‘professional courtesy’ - forgiving the infractions committed by one of their own. It typically involves speeding, but officers can get a pass for erratic or impaired driving as well. Professional courtesy can extend to the close relatives of police officers, and to the prosecutors, judges and politicians who are part of the system.
Agent Orange’s Lasting Effects
The Corpus Christi Caller-Times
Chemical still damaging lives of those exposed, their families
Home, Foreclosed Home
Salem Statesman Journal
The ripple effect in our community from the housing market collapse affects local residents in traditional and unexpected ways that will linger for years. The Statesman Journal examines those effects in a five-part series.
Elusive Evergreen State Professor Found In Chile
KUOW Puget Sound
A former Evergreen State College professor in Washington State has evaded efforts to collect the $120,000 fine against him. KUOW found the man, Jorge Gilbert, working for Universidad ARCIS in Santiago, Chile.
"Medicare has emerged as a potent campaign issue, with both Barack Obama and Mitt Romney vowing to tame its spending growth while protecting seniors. But there’s been little talk about some of the arcane factors that drive up costs, such as billing and coding practices, and what to do about them."
After a report was released by Spokane’s regional health district, the newspaper mapped life expectancy for each neighborhood in Spokane – showing the differences in well-being among its many neighborhoods: People in the county’s wealthy neighborhoods can expect to live longer than those in the poorer ones, by years and years.
The Indiana Department of Child Services director, James W. Payne, fought to discredit and derail his agency’s recommendations in a child neglect case involving his own grandchildren, the Indianapolis Star reported. The story is based on the newspaper’s review of hundreds of pages of documents from DCS legal filings, investigation reports, monthly status reports submitted by guardians and therapists, as well as police and court records. After the investigation, many – including the state’s Democratic candidate for governor – are calling for his resignation.
The Asbury Park Press reports that although New Jersey has paid millions in sexual harassment cases, little has been done to change the culture in some agencies.
In a report by The Chicago Reporter it has been found that "despite the Illinios Department of Child and Family Services involvement, many children die at the hands of their caregivers. Advocates say their deaths could be prevented."
A Bay Citizen investigation has found that "veterans waiting for decisions on their disability claims wait longer than the Department of Veterans Affairs has acknowledged, especially if they come from larger urban areas. Solutions tried in four locations have not helped so far, as the backlog continues to grow."
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