Plus, a Kentucky lawmaker pushes to regulate anti-abortion pregnancy centers after a Reveal investigation.

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** THE WEEKLY REVEAL
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Saturday, April 1, 2023

Hello! In this issue:
* A detective on the rise ([link removed]) in Philadelphia abused his power. How did he get away with it for so long?

* A Reveal investigation spurs a Kentucky state lawmaker ([link removed]) to take action against anti-abortion pregnancy centers.

* The connection between Republican-dominated state legislatures ([link removed]) , taxpayer money and the anti-abortion movement.


** THIS WEEK’S PODCAST
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** The Suspect Detective
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[link removed]

Philip Nordo ([link removed]) , a third-generation cop, was a rising star in the Philadelphia Police Department, helping to secure nearly 100 convictions in his eight years as a homicide detective. But then people Nordo helped send to prison and witnesses and informants in his cases started to tell disturbing stories about his behavior on the job. There were rumors of a porn business, secret payments, and sexual assault and abuse.

An investigation by the Philadelphia district attorney’s office would lead to Nordo being charged with a number of violent crimes ([link removed]) , including rape and sexual assault. It took a jury less than two days to reach a verdict: guilty on all 18 counts. In December, he was sentenced to a minimum of 24 and a half years in prison.

How did Nordo get away with his abuses of power for so long?

This week on Reveal ([link removed]) , Philadelphia Inquirer reporters Chris Palmer and Samantha Melamed take us inside Nordo’s career and the district attorney’s case and examine what the Philadelphia Police Department has done to prevent the next Nordo.
Listen to the episode ([link removed])
🎧 Other places to listen: Apple Podcasts ([link removed]) , Spotify ([link removed]) , Google Podcasts ([link removed]) , Stitcher ([link removed]) or wherever you get your podcasts.


** RELATED
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📝 Predator in Blue (The Philadelphia Inquirer ([link removed]) )
📝 Four Takeaways From the ‘Predator in Blue’ Investigation Into Homicide Detective Philip Nordo (The Philadelphia Inquirer ([link removed]) )
Taking on powerful interests demands lots of time, a strong backbone and your support. Donate to keep us going ([link removed]) .


** NEW
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** Kentucky Lawmaker Pushes to Regulate Anti-Abortion Pregnancy Centers After Reveal Investigation
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By Laura C. Morel
[link removed]


** A sign outside an anti-abortion crisis pregnancy center in Massachusetts advertises free pregnancy tests. Credit: Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
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A Kentucky state lawmaker filed a bill ([link removed]) that called for the regulation of anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers after reading Reveal’s reporting on a center in the state.

A Kentucky nurse became a whistleblower when she reported infection control issues at a pregnancy center where she volunteered.

The center was using an expired disinfectant to sanitize equipment used in transvaginal ultrasounds. And that disinfectant had no efficacy against the human papillomavirus, a widespread and potentially deadly sexually transmitted infection responsible for more than 90% of cervical cancers, as well as cancers of the genitals and throat.

State Rep. Sarah Stalker, a Democrat from Louisville, said she was concerned ([link removed]) about the effect that unlicensed and unregulated centers could have on public health. In Kentucky, most counties do not have an OB-GYN, and the state’s maternal mortality rate is more than twice the national average.

The Kentucky bill ([link removed]) is among a wave of legislative proposals in more than a dozen states that target these centers. Many of the bills were filed following a Reveal investigation that found that only a few states require centers providing medical services to be formally licensed as clinics, with most centers operating in a kind of regulatory dead zone, free of significant state and federal oversight. In many states, tanning salons, massage parlors and even pet stores face significantly stricter oversight.

“What I want people to have a conversation about is keeping people healthy and safe and their privacy protected. And that’s what this bill would do,” Stalker said.
Read the full story ([link removed])


** RELATED
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📝 This Nurse Wanted to Help Women Avoid Abortions. Then She Saw Infection Control Problems at a Crisis Pregnancy Center. Read ([link removed]) .
📝 How Anti-Abortion Pregnancy Centers Can Claim to Be Medical Clinics and Get Away With It. Read ([link removed]) .


** A Number to Remember
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$25 million

Florida Republican lawmakers are poised to approve ([link removed]) $25 million in taxpayer funding for anti-abortion pregnancy centers. That’s more than a fivefold increase over last year’s funding of $4.45 million. The proposal is tucked at the bottom of a new bill that would ban abortions past six weeks of pregnancy, dramatically reducing access from the 15-week limit signed into law last year.

The proposed funding increase is part of a national anti-abortion campaign ([link removed]) spearheaded by Republican-dominated state legislatures. Florida is among 14 states that fund pregnancy centers through “alternatives to abortion” programs, funneling millions in taxpayer money to the anti-abortion movement. This year, at least three additional states – Kansas, Tennessee and West Virginia – are considering new plans to fund pregnancy centers.

📝 Read the full story ([link removed]) .


** In Case You Missed It
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[link removed]
🎧 Buried Secrets: America’s Indian Boarding Schools Part 1 ([link removed])

[link removed]
🎧 Buried Secrets: America’s Indian Boarding Schools Part 2 ([link removed])

This issue of The Weekly Reveal was written by Kassie Navarro, edited by Kate Howard and copy edited by Nikki Frick. If you enjoyed this issue, forward it to a friend ([link removed]) . Have some thoughts? Drop us a line (mailto:[email protected]) with feedback or ideas!

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