By Lois Beckett/ProPublica

According to articles this week across the Internet, there has been an average of one mass shooting every day in the United States: 355 so far this year. It’s a jarring statistic, and one that has gone viral in the wake of the massacre in San Bernardino, California.
But there are two problems with the number: It doesn’t actually provide a clear estimate of how often the country has seen shooting rampages like the one in San Bernardino. And it obscures the broader reality of gun violence in America.

Read More

Posted on December 9, 2015

Excerpts From A 2013 Report

“Our analysis of police corruption in Chicago yields four major findings,” a team from UIC found.
“First, corruption has long persisted within the CPD and continues to be a serious problem. There have been 102 convictions of Chicago police since the beginning of 2000.
“Second, police officers often resist reporting crimes and misconduct committed by fellow officers. The ‘blue code of silence,’ while difficult to prove, is an integral part of the
department’s culture and it exacerbates the corruption problems. However last November, a federal jury found that the City of Chicago and its police culture were partially responsible for Officer Anthony Abbate’s brutal beating of a female bartender. After the civil trial to assess damages, the victim’s attorney declared, ‘We proved a code of silence at every level in the Chicago Police Department.’
Third, over time a large portion of police corruption has shifted from policemen aiding and abetting mobsters and organized crime to officers involved with drugs dealers and street gangs. Since the year 2000, a total of 47 Chicago law enforcement officers were convicted of drug and gang related crimes. The department’s war on drugs puts police officers, especially those working undercover, in dangerous situations where they must cooperate with criminals to catch criminals. These endeavors require that CPD superiors provide a high degree of leadership and oversight to keep officers on the straight and narrow.
“Fourth, internal and external sources of authority, including police superintendents and mayors, have up to now failed to provide adequate anti-corruption oversight and leadership.”

Read More

Posted on December 8, 2015

By The U.S. Public Interest Research Group

A new study by United States Public Interest Research Group Education Fund analyzes which federal agencies allow companies to write off out-of-court settlements as tax deductions and which agencies are transparent about these deals.
The study found that five of the largest government agencies that sign settlement agreements with corporations rarely specify the tax status of the resulting payments. Billions of dollars are allowed to be written off as cost of doing business tax deductions. Additionally, the report found that major government agencies do not consistently disclose the details of corporate settlement agreements.

Read More

Posted on December 3, 2015

By Dustin Volz/Reuters

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has used a secretive authority to compel internet and telecommunications firms to hand over customer data including an individual’s complete web browsing history and records of all online purchases, a court filing released Monday shows.
The documents are believed to be the first time the government has provided details of its so-called national security letters, which are used by the FBI to conduct electronic surveillance without the need for court approval.

Read More

Posted on December 1, 2015

By Steve Rhodes

First in a series.
“In the six days since the dash-cam video showing the fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald was released, Mayor Rahm Emanuel has not had a public schedule to allow for any questions concerning the video or subsequent protests and calls for his resignation on social media,” Mary Ann Ahern reports for NBC Chicago.
“The mayor has plans to leave for Paris for the global Climate Summit for Local Leaders later this week, but it is not clear exactly when he will leave. Emanuel was originally scheduled to leave on Friday, but his spokesperson would not confirm his departure date this week.”

Read More

Posted on November 30, 2015

By Rudy López/Interfaith Worker Justice
This year might be the first Cyber Monday that you can order something online and have it delivered in just a few hours.
That’s because online retailers like Amazon are employing an army of delivery drivers to bring your order to your home or office with almost no turn-around time.
This might sound like a great deal for consumers. But if you happen to be one of Amazon’s delivery drivers, there’s a huge catch.

Read More

Posted on November 30, 2015

By Mike Kentz/Reuters

A class action lawsuit, filed Wednesday, accuses 10 of Wall Street’s biggest banks and two trading platforms of conspiring to limit competition in the $320 trillion market for interest-rate swaps.
The class action lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, accuses Goldman Sachs Group, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Credit Suisse Group, Barclays Plc, BNP Paribas SA, UBS, Deutsche Bank AG, and the Royal Bank of Scotland of colluding to prevent the trading of interest rate swaps on electronic exchanges, like the ones on which stocks are traded.
As a result, the lawsuit alleges, banks have successfully prevented new competition from non-banks in the lucrative market for dealing interest rate swaps, the world’s most commonly traded derivative.

Read More

Posted on November 28, 2015

By Alec MacGillis/ProPublica

This story was co-published with The New York Times’ Sunday Review.
It is one of the central political puzzles of our time: Parts of the country that depend on the safety-net programs supported by Democrats are increasingly voting for Republicans who favor shredding that net.

Read More

Posted on November 27, 2015

By Michael Grabell/ProPublica

A national association of state lawmakers has announced that it will investigate a burgeoning effort to let companies opt out of workers’ compensation insurance and write their own plans for how they’ll care for injured workers.
The National Conference of Insurance Legislators, whose members serve on insurance committees and often act as gatekeepers for related bills in their states, said the decision was prompted by a ProPublica and NPR story last month that found that employers’ opt-out plans typically provide lower benefits for injured workers, more restrictions and little independent oversight. Texas and Oklahoma currently allow companies to opt out and other states are considering similar plans.

Read More

Posted on November 25, 2015

By Janel Bailey/Interfaith Worker Justice

Walmart’s poverty wages are forcing many of their employees into a situation where they have to choose between food and other necessities. No working person in this nation of plenty should have to go hungry.
This holiday season, we are giving thanks and giving back for those who work so hard at Walmart, yet take home such a tiny share of the earnings. We hope you’ll join us in getting involved to help feed Walmart workers and others in need this holiday season and taking action to call out Walmart and other employers who keep their workers in poverty all year long.
Here’s how you can take action to support worker justice this week:

Read More

Posted on November 24, 2015