Today's accountability news:

• The Wall Street Journal reports that since 2008, the company that operated the drilling rig that sank in the Gulf of Mexico has been the subject of about 75 percent of all federal safety investigations.
  

• Federal records show that after leaving Congress, congressional aides are moving quickly into lobbying jobs, according to USA Today.

• In Detroit, prosecutors are pursuing aggressive plea bargaining in order to get through massive caseloads, often leading to early release of dangerous criminals, reports the Detroit News. The paper reports that this strategy sometimes leads to tragic consequences.
  

• The Sacramento Bee uncovered a string of prisoner mistreatment at California prisons, including "hours-long strip-searches in a snow covered exercise yard."

• Environmental regulators in Virginia were unaware that two companies were releasing methyl bromide into the atmosphere, reports The Virginian-Pilot. The chemical is known to deplete the ozone layer and cause neurological damage in humans.

These stories are part of our ongoing roundup of investigations from other news outlets. For more, visit our Investigations Elsewhere page.