Ghost Tags: Inside New York City’s Black Market for Temporary License Plates

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, reporter Jesse Coburn noticed a strange trend: cars with out-of-state temporary paper license plates seemed to be all over New York City. Coburn filed public records requests in New Jersey and Georgia – two states that were especially prevalent among the temporary plates in New York – and discovered that fraudsters were taking advantage of lax regulations in these states and issuing tens of thousands of temporary tags from dealerships with no other apparent business activity. Motorists in NYC used the fraudulent tags for anonymity while dodging tolls, driving without insurance, and committing serious and violent crimes. Following the publication of “Ghost Tags,” lawmakers in New Jersey passed a law reforming the state’s temporary tag system, and elected officials in Georgia and New York City also introduced legislation on the issue. 

Unfettered Power: Mississippi Sheriffs

In the summer of 2022, Mississippi Today reporter Jerry Mitchell was alarmed by how often sheriffs accused of committing serious crimes managed to evade any consequences and remain in office. Mitchell and reporter Ilyssa Daly began investigating the state’s sheriffs and soon found themselves inundated with corruption allegations and harrowing tales of torture and violence from victims and witnesses across the state. Joining forces with the New York Times, the team obtained records logged from officers’ Tasers (the preferred torture device of the deputies, according to victims) and matched the logs with other departmental records to determine which device was assigned to each deputy. This allowed them to corroborate the victims’ accounts and identify additional victims. Their series of reports led to the federal indictment of one former sheriff and “lit a fire under federal authorities,” with the FBI requesting the reporters’ help in reaching the victims and witnesses for interviews.

This project was in part supported by Big Local News at Stanford University and the Pulitzer Center.

Inside Tibet: A Country Tortured

Account of the flight of 15 Buddhist monks from Tibet through the Himalayas.

Honduras

Journalists Gary Cohn and Ginger Thompson were recognized for their series “Battalion 316” which told of atrocities committed by a secret Honduran Intelligence Unit that had been trained and equipped by the CIA.

The Rostenkowski Investigation

The Sun Times story, led by journalists Charles Neubauer, Mark Brown and Michael Briggs, uncovered a corruption case against Rep Dan Rostenkowski’s campaign that had paid Dan Rostenkowski $73,000 in building rent and used taxpayer’s funds to personally acquire cars for himself.

Series on charges of sexual misconduct against former Senator Brock Adams

The news story broken by journalists David Boardman, Susan Gilmore, Eric Nalder, and Eric Pryne described in detail the sexual harassment and abuse faced by 8 women at the hands of former Senator Adams. The story examines the complicity of those around Senator Adams who knew of his behaviour and either denied it or excused it.