Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Robert Faturechi and Derek Willis

2 POSTS 0 COMMENTS
Robert Faturechi covers money in politics. At ProPublica, he has reported on self-dealing by political consultants, industry lobbyists blocking safety standards, corporate donors targeting state elections officials and political committees running afoul of the law. Before joining ProPublica, he was a reporter at The Los Angeles Times, where his work exposed inmate abuse, cronyism, secret cop cliques and wrongful jailings at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. In 2013, he used an unprecedented cache of confidential personnel records to show the agency knowingly hired dozens of cops with histories of serious misconduct. His stories helped lead to sweeping reforms at the nation’s largest jail system, federal indictments of deputies and the resignation of the sheriff. Faturechi grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from UCLA in 2008. He now lives in New York. You can send him story tips and documents through email at Robert.Faturechi@propublica.org. To send him encrypted PGP e-mail, you can use the public key: B3FE 7B85 A22E 48FB 0C93 3066 3E9A 1839 6A81 39E0 (Key ID: 3123B1DD). Or you can send him information through the free, easy-to-use encrypted messaging app Signal at (213) 271-7217. || Derek Willis is a news applications developer at ProPublica, focusing on politics and elections. He previously worked as a developer and reporter at The New York Times, a database editor at The Washington Post, and at the Center for Public Integrity and Congressional Quarterly. He began his journalism career at The Palm Beach Post. He is a co-founder of OpenElections, a project to collect and publish election results from all 50 states.

POPULAR

El Capitolio in Havana. Photo: Nigel Pacquette / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Forty-five groups urge House vote on Cuba war powers resolution

The coalition cites a 148 percent rise in Cuba's infant mortality rate since 2018 and a Senate companion measure that failed by four votes in April.
FEMA community relations workers at a disaster recovery center. Photo: George Armstrong, public domain via Wikimedia Commons

Federal judge rules Trump plan to halve FEMA workforce unlawful

The ruling covers the reservists who deploy after hurricanes and floods, with a decision on remedies due next month as hurricane season continues.
A petroleum pipeline right-of-way. Photo: Analogue Kid / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Energy Transfer seeks to overturn Pennsylvania clean water law after jet fuel spill

The 89-year-old law's mens rea challenge could also unravel other state statutes, from traffic offenses to hunting rules, if the company's argument succeeds.
Donald Trump Jr. speaking at a conference. Photo: Gage Skidmore / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Donald Trump Jr.’s Bahamas Wedding Was Secretly Bankrolled by Russian Oligarch Close to Putin

The oligarch, Umar Kremlev, spent hundreds of thousands on expenses like renting out a private island. He appears to have met Trump Jr. only recently, but he attended the intimate wedding with a large group of other Russian guests.
Demonstrators call for freedom in Iran at a solidarity rally. Photo: alisdare1 / CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Iran: Ongoing Unlawful Execution Campaign Against Protesters

At least 60 more protesters face imminent execution, Human Rights Watch says, after summary trials relying on torture-tainted confessions.