Our First Year ProPublica Illinois — Our First Year

One year ago, we launched as ProPublica’s first regional newsroom. Our mission? Publishing investigative that shines a light on injustice and holds power accountable here in our home state of Illinois.

As a team, we set out our goals even before we offi- You may have read our stories in the pages of the cially opened our doors. We wanted to tell stories that , the Chicago Sun-Times, Hoy and would otherwise go untold. We wanted to strengthen the Chronicle of Higher Education, or on the websites the journalism ecosystem we had joined. And we of Chicago magazine, The Atlantic and Mother Jones; wanted to help build a community of journalists heard them on WBEZ public radio; or seen them on and a body of journalistic work representative of the Univision. They’ve been published in outlets big and world around us, examining issues of importance to small, across Illinois and the country. communities that are often overlooked and bringing We’ve road-tripped with Chicago’s Free Street those stories into the lives of the people most affected Theater, hosting workshops around the state to hear by them. what people have to say about their communities and Some 150 articles later, we are well on our way. the issues they care about most, helping surface ideas In 12 months, we have produced more than a dozen that can lead to more relevant, powerful journalism. major investigations examining crucial issues ranging With our “Ask ProPublica Illinois” feature, we conduct from gun trafficking to property taxes to immigration. a transparent conversation with readers about how we Every week, for 52 weeks and counting, our newslet- do what we do, whether it’s explaining our guidelines ters take readers behind the scenes of our work. We for using anonymous sources, talking about how we built an online widget that tracks campaign dollars keep bias out of our reporting or offering tips for iden- flowing into the Illinois governor’s race, the most tifying fake news. We began a journalism mentorship expensive in the state’s history. The Politic-IL Insider program to work with aspiring reporters on ’s column analyzes our state’s infamous politics. And South and West sides. We filed thousands of requests through ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network, we under the Freedom of Information Act and analyzed have supported and co-published journalism about millions of lines of data. Most importantly, we have public housing issues in southern Illinois. produced hard-hitting journalism that has already led to meaningful change.

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 2 Zero Tolerance

In a series of investigative stories, we have provided We also published a piece tracing what happened a rare, comprehensive look at the secretive network to the 99 children sent to Chicago after being separat- of Chicago shelters that have housed thousands of ed at the border as part of the zero-tolerance crack- immigrant children in recent years, including those down, including a 10-month-old who was bitten re- taken from their parents at the border as part of the peatedly by an older child and later hospitalized after Trump administration’s zero-tolerance policy. falling from a highchair during a five-month stay at a In one story, using thousands of confidential inter- shelter here. Our reports described, in detail, cases of nal records, ProPublica Illinois reporters Jodi S. Co- severe depression and other — potentially irrepara- hen, Duaa Eldeib and Melissa Sanchez documented ble — mental health challenges children suffered as the children’s troubles both before and after entering reunification delays lasted months. federal custody, how long they spent in detention and The stories, which sparked national attention, the difficulties they faced there, including allegations were published in English and Spanish and under- of abuse and negligence, as well as the trauma they scored the importance of local reporting in helping to continue to face. shape public understanding of national policy issues.

Lydia Fu for ProPublica Illinois

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 3 Rob Weychert/ProPublica

Driven Into Debt

In February, we published an investigation that re- for vehicle city sticker violations to boost revenue vealed how vehicle ticket debt has made Chicago the only served to intensify a spiraling debt problem that nation’s capital for Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings, a affects thousands of low-income drivers. Former City phenomenon that disproportionately affects poor Clerk Susana Mendoza publicly expressed regret for African Americans in the city. Our investigation led to her role in the penalty change. a third-party study and report by the Woodstock Insti- Throughout our reporting, we’ve asked the public tute, which confirmed that Chicago’s vehicle ticketing to share their experiences, questions and concerns practices unfairly burden low-income and minority about this issue. The response has been remarkable. communities. The report also offered several policy Our reporters made a series of radio appearances to recommendations, including an audit of Chicago tick- discuss their findings, during which listeners jammed eting enforcement practices to identify the existence the phone lines eager to tell their stories and seek of any geographic, racial or economic bias. guidance. Not only have people reached out to us, This initial reporting sparked an ongoing series they started engaging with each other and demanding called “Driven Into Debt” and a partnership with answers from the city. As a result, ticketing is now a WBEZ to dig deeper into this problem, including a topic at the center of debate for Chicago’s 2019 may- story about how the city issues multiple tickets to the oral election. same vehicle in one day, in violation of its own poli- cies, and another about how a 2012 hike in the charge

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 4 The Tax Divide

Reporter Jason Grotto took on the extraordinarily in assessments, with small businesses punished while challenging subject of property taxes, which serve as owners of downtown skyscrapers caught massive tax the bedrock of local government funding for educa- breaks. The team also identified the politically pow- tion and public safety, and revealed that, in one of the erful law firms profiting off the county’s inaccurate largest and most economically and racially divided assessments, providing the first comprehensive look counties in the , the system is an utter at the billions of dollars at stake. failure. To do this, Grotto studied an arcane system for Reaction was swift and comprehensive. The coun- almost two years, reading thousands of documents, ty board president vowed to implement a new system analyzing more than 100 million computer records that will be fair and equitable, while the inspector and interviewing dozens of experts, attorneys and general for Cook County launched an investiga- property owners affected by deeply flawed assess- tion into assessment practices. Drawing heavily on ments. our reporting, three prominent public interest law “The Tax Divide” continued reporting that Grotto offices filed multiple lawsuits alleging violations began at the Chicago Tribune, in which he found that of state and federal civil rights and housing laws. Cook County’s assessments of residential properties State and local lawmakers, concerned that the proper- were so riddled with errors that experts questioned ty tax system favored those who supported the Cook the integrity of the entire system. Among the most County Assessor politically, introduced legislation significant findings was the high level of regressivity, to limit campaign contributions to the assessor. the overvaluing of low-priced homes and the under- Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner issued an executive valuing of high-priced ones. And the appeals process, order to limit legislators from benefiting from the tax which the county relies upon to right inaccurate as- appeals system through their law firms and the coun- sessments, was actually making the inequity worse. ty board required Berrios to testify at a hearing about In partnership with the Tribune, Grotto and Pro- his methods. Publica Illinois data reporter Sandhya Kambhampati In the March 2018 Democratic primary, the public examined the roughly $200 billion commercial and voiced their frustrations by voting Assessor Jo- industrial assessment system, revealing that, like seph Berrios, who was also chairman of the pow- their residential counterparts, the owners of commer- erful Cook County Democratic Party, out of office. cial and industrial properties suffered great inequities

Haisam Hussein, special to ProPublica

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 5 Illinois Policy Institute has called for government reform while channeling money to firms owned by insiders. (Susie Cagle, special to ProPublica Illinois)

Revelatory Stories Brought to Light

For our first major investigation, police reports and court records, for-profit ventures in which they reporter Mick Dumke, in partner- Dumke exposed the shortcomings have a stake. One of the nonprofits ship with WBEZ and the Chicago of federal enforcement efforts to funded by the IPI, a “watchdog” Sun-Times, took on one of the stem the flow of weapons, raising organization called Project underlying issues of gun violence questions about whether they Six, shut its doors after Dum- in Chicago: how illegal guns move are dismantling gun networks or ke’s investigation. Dumke also through the city. The story fo- effectively helping to set them up. spearheaded an investigation into cused on the troubling case of a In early 2018, Dumke led an Chicago’s notorious gang data- young man named John Thomas investigation, co-published with base and found dubious entries, who brokered almost two dozen the Sun-Times, into the web of discrepancies and outright errors, illegal gun sales at the urging of a finances behind the conservative including the names of alleged friend, who turned out to be a paid think tank Illinois Policy Insti- gang members as old as 132. We federal informant. Through inter- tute and found that the organi- were the first news organization views with Thomas, family mem- zation’s CEO, John Tillman, and to obtain and publish the con- bers, other defendants, attorneys, his associates moved millions of tents of the database. Dumke’s police and prosecutors, as well as dollars around five interconnect- reporting raised serious questions examining hundreds of pages of ed nonprofits, steering money to surrounding privacy and surveil-

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 6 lance, prompting the Police De- partment to promise to enact new policies for how the data is accessed and challenged, and it was included in a federal lawsuit asserting that the gang database is unconstitutional and discriminatory. We co-published an investiga- tion in April with the Chronicle of Higher Education about how the University of Illinois at Chi- cago quietly returned $3.1 million in grant funds to the National Institute of Mental Health after one of the university’s most re- nowned child psychiatrists, Dr. Mani Pavuluri, violated research Jaylan Banks, 18, was sentenced to eight years in an adult prison for punching rules — including testing the a correctional officer at the juvenile correctional center in Harrisburg in powerful drug lithium on children southern Illinois. In the past, he might have lost privileges, served a short stint younger than 13. The university in solitary confinement or had his juvenile term extended. (Nick Schnelle for president and chancellor have ProPublica Illinois) pledged to improve the research oversight process, and our investi- gation continues. lawyers to review the cases of the as part of a federal consent decree, In November 2017, Cohen, in youths charged with adult crimes. asked a federal judge to take the partnership with a reporter at the In June, Eldeib extended the rare step of appointing a “spe- Chicago Tribune, investigated the spotlight from the state’s juvenile cial master” to resolve disputes Chicago Police Department’s dis- justice agency to the child welfare and data requests related to pro- ciplinary procedures and found system to co-publish an inves- viding more appropriate services that numerous cases had been tigation with The Atlantic that for such children. mismanaged or lost, resulting in unveiled how, over the last three Our journalism has already be- officers not serving their disci- years, hundreds of children in the gun to spark change, but we know plinary orders. The investigation care of the Illinois Department that there is much more work to prompted officials to track of Child and Family Services col- be done. Part of our commitment down lost cases and ensure lectively spent over 27,000+ days as an Illinois news organization is officers served punishments in psychiatric hospitals beyond to stick with stories over time, pro- that were, in some cases, years medical necessity because the ducing the rigorous and meaning- overdue. The department also is agency could not find placements ful journalism that drives change. implementing a new case man- for them. One week after the story, We are excited to continue shining agement system. Illinois lawmakers called for a light on these issues in the years Last October, Eldeib revealed a public hearing, demanding ahead, and to connecting with how juvenile offenders at a facility state child welfare officials -ex new communities in Chicago and in southern Illinois were receiv- plain why they routinely fail to around the state that we haven’t ing lengthy sentences in adult find better homes for hundreds yet reached, to tell stories that prison for minor offenses, such of children in psychiatric hos- need telling. We hope you will as spitting at or shoving a guard. pitals. In addition, the American join us. After our investigation, lawmak- Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, ers pledged to address the issue which has monitored the state’s and an advocacy group recruited child welfare agency for decades

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 7 What People Are Saying Honors

We ask donors why they gave to ■■ Finalist for the for local reporting ProPublica. Here’s what a few of for “The Tax Divide” them said: ■■ Taylor Award for Fairness in Journalism for “The Tax Divide” “Thank you so much for your coverage of the detained children crisis. I was spurred to donate today by ■■ Nominated for 10 awards from the Chicago your piece based on abuse records from the detention Chicago Headline Club and won four, including: centers. You are fighting for our democracy and social justice. Please keep going.” — Sarita ‡‡ 2017 Watchdog Award for Excellence in Public Interest Reporting awarded to “We made a donation to ProPublica today because we “The Tax Divide” are so impressed with what you do. Fearless reporting, ‡‡ Best Multimedia Feature Presentation diving deep, shining a light on things that need to be awarded to our series on police accountability seen, analyzed, and understood. We thank you for in Chicago all your hard work and your dedication to quality ‡‡ Best Investigative Reporting (general interest journalism.” — Kathleen Jones and BJ Wishinsky daily newspaper) for “The Tax Divide” ‡‡ Best Multimedia Collaboration for our series “Because the work you do makes a positive difference on police accountability in Chicago in the lives of the disenfranchised, underrepresented and ignored.” — J.D. ■■ National Headliner Award for news series in a daily newspaper, awarded to “The Tax Divide”

■■ Excellence in Financial Journalism Award for Local and Public Service Reporting awarded to “The Tax Divide”

■■ The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation Award for Investigative Reporting.

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 8 Kristen Norman for ProPublica Illinois Our Team

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DATA REPORTER DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT Louise Kiernan Sandhya Kambhampati Jane Nicholson

DEPUTY EDITOR WEB PRODUCER COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER Steve Mills Vignesh Ramachandran Derrick Clifton

REPORTERS ENGAGEMENT REPORTER OFFICE MANAGER Jodi S. Cohen, Mick Dumke, Logan Jaffe Abigail Ropp Duaa Eldeib, Jason Grotto and FELLOWS Melissa Sanchez Jerrel Floyd and Helga Salinas NEWS APPLICATIONS DEVELOPER INTERN David Eads Katlyn Alo

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 9 Publishing Partners

■■ The Atlantic ■■ Chronicle of Higher Education ■■ WBEZ, Chicago Public Media ■■ Chicago Sun-Times ■■ City Bureau ■■ Chicago Tribune ■■ Mother Jones

Stories Reprinted by, Among Others:

■■ ABA Journal ■■ The Daily Herald ■■ MSN News ■■ Animal ■■ The Daily Line ■■ Nation of Change ■■ Austin Weekly News ■■ Eagle Pass Business Journal ■■ National Memo ■■ Before It’s News ■■ El Semanario ■■ Open Source ■■ Blavity ■■ El Diario (ES) ■■ Pacific Standard ■■ Block Club Chicago ■■ Government Technology ■■ Radio Free ■■ Boise Weekly ■■ HealthLeaders Media ■■ Rock River Times ■■ Business Insider ■■ Hoy ■■ Salon ■■ Chicago Magazine ■■ The Journal Star ■■ Telemundo Chicago ■■ Chicago Patch ■■ Juvenile Justice Information ■■ The Southern Illinoisan ■■ Chicago Reader Exchange ■■ The Triibe ■■ Chicago Sun-Times ■■ KSL.com ■■ Univision Chicago ■■ Chillicothe Times-Bulletin ■■ La Raza ■■ The Village Free Press ■■ Citizen Truth ■■ Medscape ■■ The Wire ■■ CNBC ■■ Mother Jones ■■ Wisconsin Gazette ■■ The Courier ■■ MPR News

Stories Featured by:

■■ ABC7 Chicago (WLS-TV) ■■ WBEZ ■■ WVON (1690 AM) ■■ WBBM Newsradio (780 AM) ■■ WCPT (820 AM) ■■ WTTW, Chicago PBS ■■ CLTV ■■ WGN 9 Chicago (WGN-TV) ■■ NBC 5 Chicago (WMAQ-TV) ■■ WGN Radio (720 AM) ■■ Vocalo, Chicago Public Media ■■ WNYC, Public Radio

ProPublica Illinois Leading Supporters:

■■ Abrams Foundation ■■ The Field Foundation of ■■ Elizabeth Liebman ■■ Conant Family Foundation Illinois ■■ Jim & Kay Mabie ■■ The Richard H. Driehaus ■■ ■■ The Manaaki Foundation Foundation ■■ Irving and Roberta Lewis ■■ Robert R. McCormick ■■ Emerson Collective Charitable Foundation Foundation ■■ The Joyce Foundation ■■ Paul & Ann Sagan

PROPUBLICA ILLINOIS — OUR FIRST YEAR 10