Hidden at Home
NorthJersey.com reporters spent more than a year investigating the $1.5 billion system overseeing group homes that house adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, interviewing hundreds of people and sifting through tens of thousands of pages of documents.
Introduction: NJ group homes are failing residents. What we uncovered
Deaths: Alarming questions, few investigations of NJ group home deaths
Medication errors: Wrong doses. Missed doses. Drug errors pose NJ group home risks
Consequences: Amid NJ group home care lapses, state often fails to act
Looking ahead: How could NJ group home reform bills impact the industry?
Response: NJ advocates want stronger state oversight, better investigations of group homes
Action: NJ halts admissions at large group home provider, says staff issues contributed to deaths
Search tool: Search NorthJersey.com's interactive database of NJ group home violations and penalties
Watchdog and influence
NJ Senate President Scutari failed to disclose details of about $600K in campaign expenses (The Record)
Complete coverage, timeline for murder-for-hire case that has NJ political world abuzz (The Record)
Early leads in NJ murder for hire case included Russian mafia, art deco painting and meth (The Record)
FBI raided home of political operative for info on murder-for-hire and dark money, docs show (The Record)
‘This is so bizarre': Why this NJ political murder-for-hire scandal may just be starting (The Record)
Caddle’s dark money connections: Interactive graphic (The Record)
Bob Menendez's wife hit and killed a man while driving on Bogota's Main Street in 2018 (The Record)
NJ tax breaks often get bought by companies that were never approved to win them (The Record)
Russian-born oil magnate gives big to Trump Victory (OpenSecrets.org)
Surge in LLC contributions brings more mystery about true donors (OpenSecrets.org)
You’re young and broke. Here’s how to still win a congressional seat (The Center for Public Integrity)
Housing
When pals of a Bergen artist heard he was homeless, they rushed to help. Then time ran out (The Record)
Benefit shortfalls can cost seniors their homes, and NJ shelters can't meet medical needs (The Record)
Tenants often most at risk are in the dark on how close dangerous chemicals lurk (The Record)
'Nothing rapid about it:' NJ renters struggle to find housing even with COVID relief (The Record)
How much can your rent go up in NJ? It depends on whether your town has rent control (The Record)
NJ renters still being locked out by landlords despite COVID eviction freeze (The Record)
Criminal justice
Knowing who police pull over can help end racial profiling. But few NJ towns track it (The Record)
In fatal shootings by police, 1 in 5 officers' names go undisclosed (The Washington Post)
'These people are profitable': Under Trump, private prisons are cashing in on ICE detainees (USA Today)
Deaths in custody. Sexual violence. Hunger strikes. What we uncovered inside ICE facilities across the US (USA Today)
What's it like to hear voices? NJ course aims to help police aid those in mental crisis (The Record)
What could 'defunding the police' look like in New Jersey? (The Record)
Pressure is on for more police transparency. But NJ delayed database showing seized property (The Record)
Md. Gov. Larry Hogan signs bill limiting civil asset forfeiture (The Washington Post)
Education
Unsafe stairs. Leaking closets. No walls. As Paterson schools crumble, students struggle (The Record)
Climate change
Saturation Point: NJ puts affordable homes in flood-prone areas — and residents at risk (The Record)
‘Hope to Hopelessness’: Will government step up after second storm? (The Center for Public Integrity)
Displacement looms for Ida victims still recovering from flooding (The Record)
More than 3 months after Ida flooded Englewood apartment building, tenants remain in limbo (The Record)
Because of climate change, Ida's watery wrath is no longer an aberration for the Northeast (The Record)