Republican legislatures around the country are shielding their work on allegedly discriminatory voting maps to prevent the public from finding out how and why they made their decisions.
ProPublica ProPublica <[link removed]> Donate <[link removed]>
The Big Story
Wed. Oct 18, 2023
<[link removed]>
The GOP’s Secret to Protecting Gerrymandered Electoral Maps? Claim Privilege. <[link removed]> Through new and expansive assertions of privilege, Republican legislatures around the country are shielding their work on allegedly discriminatory voting maps to prevent the public from finding out how and why they made their decisions. by Marilyn W. Thompson
VIEW STORY <[link removed]>
More From Our Newsroom
Western States Opposed Tribes’ Access to the Colorado River 70 Years Ago. History Is Repeating Itself. <[link removed]> Records unearthed by a University of Virginia professor shed new light on states’ vocal opposition in the 1950s to tribes claiming their share of the river. Today, many are still fighting to secure water. by Mark Olalde, ProPublica, and Anna V. Smith, High Country News <[link removed]>
When Foster Parents Don’t Want to Give Back the Baby <[link removed]> In many states, adoption lawyers are pushing a new legal strategy that forces biological parents to compete for custody of their children. by Eli Hager <[link removed]>
Local Newspapers Are Vanishing. How Should We Remember Them? <[link removed]> As smaller newspapers shrink or disappear, it’s easy to romanticize the role they played. But one reporter’s memories of the heyday of local journalism reveal a much more complicated reality. by Daniel Golden <[link removed]>
How a Maneuver in Puerto Rico Led to a $29 Billion Tax Bill for Microsoft <[link removed]> In the largest audit in U.S. history, the IRS rejected Microsoft’s attempts to channel profits to a small factory in Puerto Rico that burned Windows software onto CDs. by Paul Kiel <[link removed]>
Legislation to Support Stillbirth Prevention Heads to House After Unanimous Senate Approval <[link removed]> Following ProPublica’s reporting on the nation’s stillbirth crisis, a bipartisan group of senators reintroduced a bill to fund prevention. After the Senate passed the legislation unanimously in September, the House is expected to take it up next. by Duaa Eldeib <[link removed]>
These Men Say Their Utah Therapist Touched Them Inappropriately During Sessions Paid for by the LDS Church <[link removed]> A spokesperson for the church said it does not vet the therapists its bishops recommend and pay for, saying “it is up to church members” to “make their own decisions.” by Jessica Miller, The Salt Lake Tribune <[link removed]>
Columbia University Deals With Revelations About Its Decadeslong Failure to Stop a Predator <[link removed]> Medical students have protested and survivors have expressed outrage following ProPublica’s investigation into how Columbia ignored warnings that former OB-GYN Robert Hadden was abusing patients. by Bianca Fortis <[link removed]>
Book Bans in Texas Spread as New State Law Takes Effect <[link removed]> As Texas enters its third straight school year of coordinated book banning activity, a growing number of districts are targeting library books. Caught in the dragnet: books featuring a “naked” crayon and one with a cartoon butt. by Jeremy Schwartz <[link removed]>
Police Resistance and Politics Undercut the Authority of Prosecutors Trying to Reform the Justice System <[link removed]> After major American cities began electing prosecutors who campaigned on the promise of systemic reform, law enforcement unions labeled these DAs as soft on crime while lawmakers made legal and legislative efforts to remove them from office. by Jeremy Kohler <[link removed]>
We Don’t Talk About Leonard: The Man Behind the Right’s Supreme Court Supermajority <[link removed]> The inside story of how Leonard Leo built a machine that remade the American legal system — and what he plans to do next. by Andy Kroll, Andrea Bernstein and Ilya Marritz, illustrations by Nate Sweitzer for ProPublica <[link removed]>
Democratic Rep. Clyburn’s Role in Redrawn Congressional Maps Becomes Key in Supreme Court Redistricting Case <[link removed]> The court will hear a case about whether South Carolina Republicans illegally took race into account when they created the current voting districts. by Marilyn W. Thompson <[link removed]>
Texas Took Over Its Largest School District, but Has Let Underperforming Charter Networks Expand <[link removed]> The state took over Houston ISD after one of its schools continuously failed to meet academic standards. But an analysis of records shows it’s been more generous with underperforming charter schools, waiving expansion requirements at least 17 times. by Kiah Collier and Dan Keemahill <[link removed]>
A Detective Sabotaged His Own Cases Because He Didn’t Like the Prosecutor. The Police Department Did Nothing to Stop Him. <[link removed]> Across the country, police have undermined and resisted reform. To protest a prosecutor, one detective was willing to let murder suspects walk free, even if he’d arrested them and believed that they should be behind bars. by Jeremy Kohler, ProPublica, and Ryan Krull, Riverfront Times <[link removed]>
A Racist Harvard Scientist Commissioned Photos of Enslaved People. One Possible Descendant Wants to Reclaim Their Story. <[link removed]> The images are among the oldest known photographs of enslaved people in America. Tamara Lanier’s fight to gain control of them shows there is no clear system in place to repatriate remains of captive Africans or objects associated with them. by Jennifer Berry Hawes <[link removed]>
A Lab Test That Experts Liken to a Witch Trial Is Helping Send Women to Prison for Murder <[link removed]> The “lung float” test claims to help determine if a baby was born alive or dead, but many medical examiners say it’s too unreliable. Yet the test is still being used to bring murder charges — and get convictions. by Duaa Eldeib <[link removed]>
Find us on Facebook <[link removed]> Follow us on Twitter <[link removed]> Follow us on Instagram <[link removed]> Watch us on Youtube <[link removed]> Donate <[link removed]>
Get the ProPublica mobile app:
Download on the App Store <[link removed]> Get it on Google Play <[link removed]>
Was this email forwarded to you from a friend? Subscribe. <[link removed]> Want less email? Click here if you only want to receive one ProPublica newsletter each week. This email was sent to
[email protected]. Update your email preferences or unsubscribe <[link removed]> to stop receiving this newsletter. Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser. <[link removed]> ProPublica • 155 Ave of the Americas, 13th Floor • New York, NY 10013 <a href="[link removed]><img src="[link removed]" alt="" border="0" /></a>