Robert Faturechi

Reporter

Photo of Robert Faturechi

Robert Faturechi is a reporter at ProPublica. He has written about how the rich avoid taxes, industry lobbying campaigns to block safety standards, conflicts of interest within government, self-dealing by political consultants and corporate donors targeting state elections officials. He broke stories on Sen. Richard Burr selling stock before the coronavirus market crash.

In 2020, he and two colleagues won the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting for a series of stories about avoidable deaths in the Navy and Marine Corps, and the failure of top commanders to heed warnings that could have saved lives.

His reporting has resulted in congressional hearings, new legislation, federal indictments and widespread reforms.

Before joining ProPublica, he was a reporter at The Los Angeles Times, where his work exposed inmate abuse, cronyism, secret cop cliques and wrongful jailings at the LA County Sheriff’s Department. He obtained an unprecedented cache of confidential personnel records that showed the agency knowingly hired dozens of cops with histories of serious misconduct. His stories helped lead to sweeping reforms at the nation’s largest jail system, criminal convictions of sheriff’s deputies and the resignation of the sheriff.

You can send him story tips and documents through email at [email protected] or on Signal/WhatsApp at (213) 271-7217.

Fact-checking Donald Trump’s Charity Claims

Judge Tosses Out Defamation Lawsuit Filed Against ProPublica, CIR

A federal district judge ruled that an Arizona businessman failed to provide evidence to back up his claim that he was defamed in an August 2014 story

The Best Reporting on Tim Kaine Through the Years

Through accountability stories and other in-depth reports, we took a look back at the career of the Virginia senator who Hillary Clinton has picked as her running mate.

What Newt Gingrich Really Thinks of Donald Trump

In a private speech recorded in February, the onetime Speaker of the U.S. House, now reportedly on the shortlist to be Trump’s running mate, said Trump would lose in a landslide if he didn’t evolve to be more like Ronald Reagan than Barry Goldwater. He added that no one knows what a Trump presidency would be like — not even Trump.

Update: FEC Looking at Super PAC That Hyped Penny Stock

Officers of ‘Voters for Hillary,’ which raised money but reported no political expenditures, had close ties to a Las Vegas firm that the PAC purportedly hired to run a call center.

Trump Taps Consultant Accused of Defrauding PAC to Lead Colorado Campaign

Patrick Davis has denied allegations that he inappropriately steered hundreds of thousands of dollars raised by a conservative PAC to organizations linked to himself and his friends. Now he’ll lead Trump’s campaign in a key swing state.

Fire Fight

Far outside DC, there’s a campaign finance fight taking place over fire safety. And it’s putting families at risk.

The Fire Sprinkler War, State by State

From New York to Minnesota, how homebuilders headed off mandatory fire sprinklers with help from friendly legislators.

‘On Like Donkey Kong’: How a Dubious Super PAC Boosted a Questionable Penny Stock

The U.S. government’s loose supervision has spawned many problems with super PACs, but helping to tout shares worth a fraction of a cent would be a new one.

Super PACs and Trump’s Wife: How a Photo Dispute Highlights Weakness in Campaign Finance Rules

Even if Trump is correct in his unproven charge that a super PAC obtained a racy photo of Melania Trump from the Ted Cruz campaign, it’s doubtful the FEC would do anything about it.

IRS Grants Nonprofit Status to ‘Dark Money’ Group Founded by Karl Rove

Crossroads GPS gets declared a nonprofit five years after applying, meaning that its donor list can remain private.

The Conservative Playbook for Keeping ‘Dark Money’ Dark

In internal memos, groups opposing tighter state campaign finance rules coach their local supporters on how to battle disclosure of political donors.

The 10 Best 2015 Investigative Reports on Political Money

Our picks for the year’s most notable in-depth stories on campaign finance, from newsrooms around the country.

How Senate Hopefuls Keep Donors Secret From Voters Until It's Too Late

U.S. Senate campaign finance disclosures are still slow-walked on paper through a 40-year-old system. Is getting it fixed worth trading away another lid on political money?

Could Scott Walker's Legal Victory Expand PAC Superpowers?

Proponents of tighter reins on political money worry that a Wisconsin ruling about the governor's recall campaign could carry seeds of another 'Citizens United.'

As Hollywood Lobbied State Department, It Built Free Home Theaters for U.S. Embassies

Four U.S. Embassies got upgraded screening rooms last year, paid for by the lobbying arm of the big studios. The industry and the government say there were no strings attached.

Hacked Sony Emails Reveal Behind-the-Scenes Political Dealings in L.A.

A Los Angeles politician cast a critical 'yes' vote months after the chief executive of Sony Pictures arranged a $25,000 corporate contribution to a super PAC.

Rapid Rise in Super PACs Dominated by Single Donors

Super PACS that get nearly all of their money from one donor quadrupled their share of overall fund-raising in 2014.

Super PAC Men: How Political Consultants Took a Texas Oilman on a Wild Ride

The head of a Texas oil dynasty joined the parade of wealthy political donors, aiming to flip the Senate to Republicans. By the time consultants were done with him, the war chest was drained and fraud allegations were flying.

A Kansas Group's Push to Oust Judges Reveals a Gap in Campaign Finance Rules

Judicial retention elections in Kansas have typically been apolitical and uncontested — until Kansans for Justice entered the fray earlier this month. Now state election overseers are grappling with a new kind of dark money.

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