
Topher Sanders
I report on injustice of any kind, but particularly in race, inequality and the legal system.
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What I Cover
I report on injustice of any kind, but particularly in race, inequality and the legal system. I’m focused on how the second Trump administration will impact justice in America, but I’m always looking for under-covered stories that affect everyday folks.
My Background
In 2023, I was part of a team of reporters that exposed the challenges communities face when freight trains block railroad crossings for days, endangering schoolchildren. Before that, my colleagues and I produced the multipart investigation “Walking While Black,” which explored how jaywalking citations are disproportionately given to Black pedestrians, and was part of a team that probed President Trump’s family separation policy. The former won the Al Nakkula award while the latter won Peabody and George Polk awards and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.
My work has spurred grand juries and investigations into prosecutors, changed federal rules and forced police departments to drop charges against the unlawfully arrested.
In 2016 I co-founded the Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting, a nonprofit working to increase the number of investigative reporters and editors of color. I am a graduate of Tuskegee University and I started my journalism career at the Montgomery Advertiser in Alabama.
You can send me feedback, story tips and documents via email at [email protected], or by Signal or WhatsApp at 904-254-0393
How Norfolk Southern Is Addressing Blocked Train Crossings in Hammond, Indiana
The railroad company has delivered on early, short-term fixes for the trains blocking kids from getting to school, but some officials are skeptical it will follow through on bigger, permanent changes.
by Topher Sanders,
Help ProPublica Report on Railroad Worker Safety
Many railroad employees tell us being injured on the job or reporting a safety concern can be fraught with consequences. Our investigative journalists want to talk with insiders in order to tell this story right.
by Topher Sanders, Dan Schwartz and Ruth Baron,
Blocked Crossings Crisis Draws Local and National Calls for Action
After seeing images of kids crawling under trains, regulators ask companies to address blocked crossings, lawmakers demand consequences, residents clamor for solutions and Norfolk Southern’s CEO calls a mayor to work out a fix.
by Topher Sanders and Dan Schwartz,
The True Dangers of Long Trains
Trains are getting longer. Railroads are getting richer. But these “monster trains” are jumping off of tracks across America and regulators are doing little to curb the risk.
by Dan Schwartz and Topher Sanders, with additional reporting by Gabriel Sandoval and Danelle Morton, graphics by Haisam Hussein,
A Norfolk Southern Policy Lets Officials Order Crews to Ignore Safety Alerts
In October, months before the East Palestine derailment, the company also directed a train to keep moving with an overheated wheel that caused it to derail miles later in Sandusky, Ohio.
by Topher Sanders and Dan Schwartz,
Do Blocked Railroad Crossings Endanger Your Community? Tell Us More.
We want to understand what stationary and long trains mean for EMS, firefighters, police and families across the country.
by Ruth Baron, Topher Sanders and Dan Schwartz,
A Year After Hurricane Ida Caused Flood Deaths, Officials Are Starting to Address Storm Drain Dangers
Following ProPublica’s investigation into flash flood deaths, local and federal governments are working to secure potentially dangerous storm drains.
by Topher Sanders,
Storm Drains Keep Swallowing People During Floods
An alarming number of people (especially children) have drowned after disappearing into storm drains during floods. The deadly problem should be easy for federal, state and local government agencies to fix, but tragedy strikes again and again.
by Topher Sanders,
Inspecting the NYPD “Puzzle Palace”
Withheld records. Canceled interviews. Slow-walk requests. The Inspector General keeps hitting walls while trying to probe problems in the NYPD. “There’s a reason people call 1 Police Plaza the puzzle palace,” one city official said.
by Topher Sanders,
Vaccinating Black Americans Is Essential. Key States Aren’t Doing the Work to Combat Hesitancy
States and the federal government also don’t reliably collect data so we won’t have a good idea of whether the vaccine is reaching these critical populations.
by Caroline Chen, Ryan Gabrielson and Topher Sanders,