ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that reports on abuses of power. to receive our best stories as soon as they’re published.Did you know that if you make less than $66,000 a year, you can prepare and file your taxes for free?No? That’s no accident. Companies that make tax preparation software, like Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, would rather you didn’t know.Intuit and other tax software companies have to make sure that the IRS doesn’t offer its own tax preparation and filing service. In exchange, the companies have entered into an agreement with the IRS to offer a “Free File” product to...…ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that reports on abuses of power. to receive our best stories as soon as they’re published.Did you know that if you make less than $66,000 a year, you can prepare and file your taxes for free?No? That’s no accident. Companies that make tax preparation software, like Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, would rather you didn’t know.Intuit and other tax software companies have to make sure that the IRS doesn’t offer its own tax preparation and filing service. In exchange, the companies have entered into an agreement with the IRS to offer a “Free File” product to...WW…

Over three years, nearly 400 pregnant or new mothers died in Texas. Its system for helping the uninsured thwarts women at every turn, frustrates doctors and midwives, and incentivizes substandard care. Tiffany Revilla holds her newborn daughter, Cheyenne, as her fiance, David, cares for their 1-year-old, Adillie, in Fort Worth, Texas. Because of insurance-related delays, Revilla didn’t begin prenatal care until more than halfway through her most recent pregnancy. (Callaghan O'Hare, special to ProPublica) ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to...…Over three years, nearly 400 pregnant or new mothers died in Texas. Its system for helping the uninsured thwarts women at every turn, frustrates doctors and midwives, and incentivizes substandard care. Tiffany Revilla holds her newborn daughter, Cheyenne, as her fiance, David, cares for their 1-year-old, Adillie, in Fort Worth, Texas. Because of insurance-related delays, Revilla didn’t begin prenatal care until more than halfway through her most recent pregnancy. (Callaghan O'Hare, special to ProPublica) ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to...WW…

With the agency under fire for holding children in deplorable conditions and over racist and misogynistic Facebook posts, one agent speaks about what it’s like to do his job. “Somewhere down the line people just accepted what’s going on as normal.” The Border Patrol agent, a veteran with 13 years on the job, had been assigned to the agency’s detention center in McAllen, Texas, for close to a month when the team of court-appointed lawyers and doctors showed up one day at the end of June. Taking in the squalor, the stench of unwashed bodies, and the poor health and vacant eyes of the...…With the agency under fire for holding children in deplorable conditions and over racist and misogynistic Facebook posts, one agent speaks about what it’s like to do his job. “Somewhere down the line people just accepted what’s going on as normal.” The Border Patrol agent, a veteran with 13 years on the job, had been assigned to the agency’s detention center in McAllen, Texas, for close to a month when the team of court-appointed lawyers and doctors showed up one day at the end of June. Taking in the squalor, the stench of unwashed bodies, and the poor health and vacant eyes of the...WW…

In the Spring of 2011, the brothers Melvin Davis and Licurtis Reels were the talk of Carteret County, on the central coast of North Carolina. Some people said that the brothers were righteous; others thought that they had lost their minds. That March, Melvin and Licurtis stood in court and refused to leave the land that they had lived on all their lives, a portion of which had, without their knowledge or consent, been sold to developers years before. The brothers were among dozens of Reels family members who considered the land theirs, but Melvin and Licurtis had a particular stake in it....…In the Spring of 2011, the brothers Melvin Davis and Licurtis Reels were the talk of Carteret County, on the central coast of North Carolina. Some people said that the brothers were righteous; others thought that they had lost their minds. That March, Melvin and Licurtis stood in court and refused to leave the land that they had lived on all their lives, a portion of which had, without their knowledge or consent, been sold to developers years before. The brothers were among dozens of Reels family members who considered the land theirs, but Melvin and Licurtis had a particular stake in it....WW…

In 2018, accountants for the National Rifle Association began cataloging for its board of directors questionable financial arrangements that had led to millions of dollars in payments to a group of top executives and consultants. The NRA was experiencing cash flow problems, and the accountants were trying to address what they believed to be serious financial mismanagement. For a year and a half, the NRA has employed an outside counsel, William A. Brewer III, who represents the organization in high-profile legal disputes and is also deeply involved in internal decision-making. The...…In 2018, accountants for the National Rifle Association began cataloging for its board of directors questionable financial arrangements that had led to millions of dollars in payments to a group of top executives and consultants. The NRA was experiencing cash flow problems, and the accountants were trying to address what they believed to be serious financial mismanagement. For a year and a half, the NRA has employed an outside counsel, William A. Brewer III, who represents the organization in high-profile legal disputes and is also deeply involved in internal decision-making. The...WW…

Medical images and health data belonging to millions of Americans, including X-rays, MRIs and CT scans, are sitting unprotected on the internet and available to anyone with basic computer expertise. The records cover more than 5 million patients in the U.S. and millions more around the world. In some cases, a snoop could use free software programs — or just a typical web browser — to view the images and private data, an investigation by ProPublica and the German broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk found. We identified 187 servers — computers that are used to store and retrieve medical data —...…Medical images and health data belonging to millions of Americans, including X-rays, MRIs and CT scans, are sitting unprotected on the internet and available to anyone with basic computer expertise. The records cover more than 5 million patients in the U.S. and millions more around the world. In some cases, a snoop could use free software programs — or just a typical web browser — to view the images and private data, an investigation by ProPublica and the German broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk found. We identified 187 servers — computers that are used to store and retrieve medical data —...WW…

Trump’s Immigration Policy at the BorderJust five days after he reached the United States, the 15-year-old Honduran boy awoke in his Tucson, Arizona, immigrant shelter one morning in 2015 to find a youth care worker in his room, tickling his chest and stomach.When he asked the man, who was 46, what he was doing, the man left. But he returned two more times, rubbing the teen’s penis through his clothing and then trying to reach under his boxers. “I know what you want, I can give you anything you need,” said the worker, who was later convicted of molestation.In 2017, a 17-year-old from...…Trump’s Immigration Policy at the BorderJust five days after he reached the United States, the 15-year-old Honduran boy awoke in his Tucson, Arizona, immigrant shelter one morning in 2015 to find a youth care worker in his room, tickling his chest and stomach.When he asked the man, who was 46, what he was doing, the man left. But he returned two more times, rubbing the teen’s penis through his clothing and then trying to reach under his boxers. “I know what you want, I can give you anything you need,” said the worker, who was later convicted of molestation.In 2017, a 17-year-old from...WW…

MEMPHIS, Tennessee — In July 2007, Carrie Barrett went to the emergency room at Methodist University Hospital, complaining of shortness of breath and tightness in her chest. Her leg was swollen, she’d later recall, and her toes were turning black. Given her family history, high blood pressure and newly diagnosed congestive heart failure, doctors performed a heart catheterization, threading a long tube through her groin and into her heart. Her share of the two-night stay: $12,109. Barrett, who has never made more than $12 an hour, doesn’t remember getting any notices to pay from the...…MEMPHIS, Tennessee — In July 2007, Carrie Barrett went to the emergency room at Methodist University Hospital, complaining of shortness of breath and tightness in her chest. Her leg was swollen, she’d later recall, and her toes were turning black. Given her family history, high blood pressure and newly diagnosed congestive heart failure, doctors performed a heart catheterization, threading a long tube through her groin and into her heart. Her share of the two-night stay: $12,109. Barrett, who has never made more than $12 an hour, doesn’t remember getting any notices to pay from the...WW…

This story was co-published with The New York Times.ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom based in New York. to receive stories like this one in your inbox as soon as they are published.Sheila Katz was a young executive at Hillel International, the Jewish college outreach organization, when she was sent to visit the philanthropist Michael H. Steinhardt, a New York billionaire. He had once been a major donor, and her goal was to persuade him to increase his support. But in their first encounter, he asked her repeatedly if she wanted to have sex with him, she said.Deborah Mohile Goldberg worked...…This story was co-published with The New York Times.ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom based in New York. to receive stories like this one in your inbox as soon as they are published.Sheila Katz was a young executive at Hillel International, the Jewish college outreach organization, when she was sent to visit the philanthropist Michael H. Steinhardt, a New York billionaire. He had once been a major donor, and her goal was to persuade him to increase his support. But in their first encounter, he asked her repeatedly if she wanted to have sex with him, she said.Deborah Mohile Goldberg worked...WW…

Amid state and federal scrutiny as well as a public backlash, more than a half-dozen suburban Chicago families who had recently gone to court to give up guardianship of their college-bound teens to qualify for financial aid they wouldn’t otherwise receive are now quietly letting their cases lapse.Though some families remain unapologetic about their use of a practice that had gone largely unnoticed until three weeks ago, they say the real issue is not that they tried to take advantage of a legal loophole but the exorbitant cost of higher education.“A lot of families are afraid to say what...…Amid state and federal scrutiny as well as a public backlash, more than a half-dozen suburban Chicago families who had recently gone to court to give up guardianship of their college-bound teens to qualify for financial aid they wouldn’t otherwise receive are now quietly letting their cases lapse.Though some families remain unapologetic about their use of a practice that had gone largely unnoticed until three weeks ago, they say the real issue is not that they tried to take advantage of a legal loophole but the exorbitant cost of higher education.“A lot of families are afraid to say what...WW…