Archive - Illinois
Years After Being Ticketed at School for a Theft She Said Never Happened, Former Student Prevails in Court
Amara Harris declined plea deals and ultimately won a legal fight that dates back to 2019. Now she and her attorneys want to push for statewide reforms.
Clarence Thomas’ 38 Vacations: The Other Billionaires Who Have Treated the Supreme Court Justice to Luxury Travel
The fullest accounting yet shows how Thomas has secretly reaped the benefits from a network of wealthy and well-connected patrons that is far more extensive than previously understood.
We Carry the Burden of Repatriating Our Ancestors. Here’s What It’s Like to Report on the Process as an Indigenous Journalist.
Mary Hudetz describes the financial cost and emotional distress that tribal communities face as they continue to wait for the return of the remains of their ancestors, thousands of which are held in museums across the country.
Unstoppable: This Doctor Has Been Investigated at Every Level of Government. How Is He Still Practicing?
Medical boards, a health department and even federal investigators have scrutinized Dr. James McGuckin’s vascular clinics. Today he still practices, despite a decadelong string of sanctions, fines and lawsuits.
How Social Media Apps Could Be Fueling Homicides Among Young Americans
As shooting rates among the young remain stratospheric, evidence suggests social media is serving as an accelerant to violence. Taunts that once could be forgotten now live on before large audiences, prompting people to take action.
How We Used Machine Learning to Investigate Where Ebola May Strike
ProPublica spent months teaching a computer to analyze past Ebola outbreaks linked to deforestation. What we found reveals a weakness in the way that governments and public health experts are preparing for future pandemics.
The (Random) Forests for the Trees: How Our Spillover Model Works
ProPublica borrowed machine learning methods from academic research to better understand links between forest loss and spillover risk. The results were surprising, but led us to a story we wouldn’t have found otherwise.
Bullied by Her Own Party, a Wisconsin Election Official’s GOP Roots Mean Nothing in Volatile New Climate
In the face of repeated calls to back Donald Trump's bogus claims that the 2020 election was stolen, Marge Bostelmann of the Wisconsin Elections Commission remains resolute: “I’m a Republican who stands up for the truth and not for a lie.”
A New Illinois Law Shifts Repatriation and Reburial Power to Tribal Nations
For the first time, tribal nations forcibly removed from Illinois will have final say in how and when the remains of their ancestors will be returned to them.
EPA Approved a Fuel Ingredient Even Though It Could Cause Cancer in Virtually Every Person Exposed Over a Lifetime
An EPA document shows that a new Chevron fuel ingredient has a lifetime cancer risk more than 1 million times higher than what the agency usually finds acceptable — even greater than another Chevron fuel’s sky-high risk disclosed earlier this year.
A Utah Therapist Built a Reputation for Helping Gay Latter-day Saints. These Men Say He Sexually Abused Them.
Several patients complained to the church or the state licensing board about inappropriate touching during therapy sessions. It was years before the therapist gave up his license.
La industria lechera de Wisconsin depende de los indocumentados, pero el estado les prohíbe tener licencia
Los inmigrantes indocumentados en el estado pueden registrar sus autos, pero no los pueden manejar—lo cual los pone en riesgo de ser multados o arrestados.
Wisconsin’s Dairy Industry Relies on Undocumented Immigrants, but the State Won’t Let Them Legally Drive
Undocumented immigrants in the state can own and register their vehicles, but they aren’t allowed to drive them, forcing many farm workers to risk fines and arrest. “It’s a Catch-22 for a lot of folks,” advocates say.
Homeowners Trying to Get Out of “We Buy Ugly Houses” Deals Find Little Relief in State, Federal Laws
ProPublica found few jurisdictions have laws or regulations to protect homeowners from aggressive real estate tactics short of fraud or elder abuse.
Doctors Emerge as Political Force in Battle Over Abortion Laws in Ohio and Elsewhere
Ohio is among at least five states where physicians have mobilized to protect reproductive rights. Here’s what doctors in the state are doing to protect abortion.
Activists Have Long Called for Charleston to Confront Its Racial History. Tourists Are Now Expecting It.
Surging interest from visitors is contributing to a more honest telling of the city’s role in the American slave trade. But tensions are flaring as South Carolina lawmakers restrict race-based teachings.
