In the early days of the coronavirus pandemic when testing supplies were limited, local politicians went to great lengths to help a businessman with a criminal past try to sell telehealth and COVID-19 services across Texas.
The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit uncovers big stories that matter to Texans and the nation, taking aim at corruption, injustice and malfeasance across the state. Read on for the latest stories, and be sure to sign up to get the latest on the people and policies shaping the future of Texas with the Tribune’s weekday newsletter.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
ICE deported a key witness in investigation of sexual assault and harassment at El Paso detention center
Department of Homeland Security and Justice Department inspectors general are investigating allegations that ICE guards assaulted detainees in camera blind spots.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Privately built border wall will fail, engineering report says
The report, set to be filed in federal court this week, confirms reporting from ProPublica and The Texas Tribune that found portions of the wall were in danger of overturning if not fixed due to extensive erosion just months after it was built.
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Coronavirus in Texas
This loan company was founded to help Latino immigrants. It has sued thousands of low-income Latinos during the pandemic.
A monthslong investigation revealed that Oportun Inc. routinely uses lawsuits to intimidate a vulnerable population into keeping up with high-interest loan payments — even amid COVID-19.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Oportun Inc. has filed nearly 10,000 lawsuits this year against lower-income Texans. This is how we found out.
Justice of the peace courts, where a majority of debt claims are filed in Texas, aren’t required to report case-level information. Here’s how ProPublica and Texas Tribune reporters got around it to reveal one company’s aggressive tactics.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Nonprofit that financed a private border wall is now the focus of a corruption case
Investigators say fundraisers for nonprofit We Build the Wall, including Steve Bannon and founder Brian Kolfage, lied to donors and pocketed funds. Trump has tried to distance himself from the group but Kolfage has bragged about their ties.
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Coronavirus in Texas
ICE is making sure migrant kids don’t have COVID-19, then expelling them to “prevent the spread” of COVID-19
The administration has used infection risk to justify expelling thousands of children without legal protections. But it’s only expelling kids who’ve tested negative.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Federal agents are expelling asylum seekers as young as 8 months from the border, citing COVID-19 risks
Thousands of migrant children have been expelled by the Trump administration since March. Some have been held in hotels without access to lawyers or family. Advocates say many are now “virtually impossible” to find.
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Coronavirus in Texas
“It cost me everything”: Hispanic residents bear brunt of COVID-19 in Texas
Not only are Hispanic Texans catching the coronavirus at higher rates in the state’s largest county, but they also suffer some of the worst outcomes.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
This private border wall was already at risk of falling down if not fixed. A hurricane made things worse.
Engineering experts said photos of damage from last weekend’s storms reinforce the idea that building and maintaining a border fence so close to the river poses serious challenges.