Mariam Elba

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Mariam Elba is a research reporter supporting ProPublica’s local newsroom initiatives.

Elba was previously an associate research editor at the Intercept, where she managed the fact-checking desk and supervised freelancers, regularly vetting reporting and sourcing for sensitive articles and conducting background research in collaboration with newsroom teams. Elba started as a fact-checker for the Intercept and First Look Media’s visual journalism unit, Field of Vision, where she worked closely with writers, editors and filmmakers to ensure that stories were framed accurately and fairly.

Before joining the Intercept, Elba was an editorial intern at the Nation, where she received her fact-checking training. She is an adjunct professor at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York, where she teaches a course in advanced news research methods.

Election Skeptics Are Running Some County Election Boards in Georgia. A New Rule Could Allow Them to Exclude Decisive Votes.

An examination of a new election rule in Georgia suggests that local officials in just a handful of rural counties could exclude enough votes to affect the outcome of the 2024 presidential race.

Inside the State Department’s Weapons Pipeline to Israel

Leaked cables and emails show how the agency’s top officers dismissed internal evidence of Israelis misusing American-made bombs and worked around the clock to rush more out while the Gaza death toll mounted.

A Law Was Meant to Target Teen Violence. Instead, 17-Year-Olds Are Being Charged as Adults for Lesser Offenses.

Louisiana’s criminal justice system now treats all 17-year-olds as adults. Lawmakers lowered the age from 18 to curb teen violence, but nearly 70% of the 17-year-olds arrested in the state’s three largest parishes aren’t accused of violent crimes.

Georgia Judge Lifts Six-Week Abortion Ban After Deaths of Two Women Who Couldn’t Access Care

Abortion clinics rushed to provide care after a judge rejected the state’s ban, an order that could soon be paused by a higher court. It’s only the latest development since ProPublica reported the deaths of Amber Nicole Thurman and Candi Miller.

Desperate Times Led Wisconsin Tribe to High-Interest Lending, Dubious Partnerships and Legal Jeopardy

Facing financial ruin, the Lac du Flambeau tribe began offering short-term loans online with annual rates often over 600%. But as the tribe rose in an industry derided for predatory practices, it put its reputation at risk and drew costly lawsuits.

Israel Deliberately Blocked Humanitarian Aid to Gaza, Two Government Bodies Concluded. Antony Blinken Rejected Them.

Blinken told Congress, “We do not currently assess that the Israeli government is prohibiting or otherwise restricting” aid, even though the U.S. Agency for International Development and others had determined that Israel had broken the law.

Did a Georgia Hospital Break Federal Law When It Failed to Save Amber Thurman? A Senate Committee Chair Wants Answers.

Thurman died after waiting 20 hours for emergency care under the state’s abortion ban. Sen. Ron Wyden demanded records his committee could review to determine whether the hospital violated the law. “It’s not even a question,” one expert said.

Afraid to Seek Care Amid Georgia’s Abortion Ban, She Stayed at Home and Died

Candi Miller’s family said she didn't visit a doctor “due to the current legislation on pregnancies and abortions.” Maternal health experts deemed her death preventable and blamed Georgia’s abortion ban.

Abortion Bans Have Delayed Emergency Medical Care. In Georgia, Experts Say This Mother’s Death Was Preventable.

At least two women in Georgia died after they couldn’t access legal abortions and timely medical care in their state, ProPublica has found. This is one of their stories.

A Wisconsin Tribe Built a Lending Empire Charging 600% Annual Rates to Borrowers

The Lac du Flambeau tribe is at the center of a $1 billion class-action settlement that comes after years of fending off claims of predatory lending practices.

In Rural Tennessee, Domestic Violence Victims Face Barriers to Getting Justice. One County Has Transformed Its Approach.

Despite being a rural area that’s steeped in gun culture, Scott County has emerged as a model for the state in trying to prevent domestic violence from escalating.

Inside Project 2025’s Secret Training Videos

“Eradicate climate change references”; only talk to conservative media; don’t leave a paper trail for watchdogs to discover. In a series of never-before-published videos, Project 2025 details how a second Trump administration would operate.

In Los Angeles, Your Chic Vacation Rental May Be a Rent-Controlled Apartment

Amid an affordable housing crisis, dozens of rent-controlled buildings are listed on short-term rental websites. A 2018 law was supposed to stop that, but the city is struggling to enforce it.

A Judge Ruled a Louisiana Prison’s Health Care System Has Failed Inmates for Decades. A Federal Law Could Block Reforms.

The Prison Litigation Reform Act was passed to curtail the number of lawsuits filed by inmates over conditions behind bars. It has kept courts from forcing Louisiana to overhaul the medical system in its largest prison.

Oil Companies Contaminated a Family Farm. The Courts and Regulators Let the Drillers Walk Away.

The oil and gas industry has reaped profits without ensuring there will be money to plug and clean up their wells. In Oklahoma, that work could cost more than $7 billion if it falls to the state.

What’s Missing From Railroad Safety Data? Dead Workers and Severed Limbs.

Thanks to government loopholes, rail companies haven’t been scrutinized by the Federal Railroad Administration for scores of alleged worker injuries and at least two deaths.

A Utah Cleft Palate Team Says Its Approach Is Innovative. Others See a Pattern of Unnecessary Surgeries on Children.

At Primary Children’s Hospital in Utah, pediatric surgeons are taking controversial risks with how they care for kids with cleft lip and palate. Outside doctors found that some parents weren’t told their child’s care was different from the norm.

The Year After a Denied Abortion

Tennessee law prohibits women from having abortions in nearly all circumstances. But once the babies are here, the state provides little help. We followed one family as they struggled to make it.

El Departamento de Justicia trabaja con un sheriff de Wisconsin para eliminar las barreras lingüísticas

Una investigación de ProPublica en el Condado de Dane de Wisconsin reveló cómo las barreras lingüísticas y los errores de una oficial la llevaron a culpar erróneamente a un obrero de una granja lechera por la muerte de su hijo.

The DOJ Is Working With a Wisconsin Sheriff to Improve How Deputies Communicate With People Who Don’t Speak English

A ProPublica investigation in Wisconsin’s Dane County revealed how a grammatical mistake in Spanish led sheriff’s deputies to wrongly blame a Nicaraguan dairy worker for his son’s death.

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