Mollie Simon
I identify documents, sources and specialized datasets to advance investigations.
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What I Cover
I’ve investigated topics spanning education, housing, mental health, consumer finance and the environment. I often dig into archives to understand how history is shaped by, and repeated in, the present.
My Background
My work at ProPublica began in 2020, originally through a fellowship with the Scripps Howard Foundation. Before that, I worked as a researcher at LegiStorm and as a reporter for the Anderson Independent-Mail and Greenville News. In that role, I covered Clemson, South Carolina, as well as broader education stories.
Five Stories of Lives Upended After Dealing With the “We Buy Ugly Houses” Company
ProPublica found that HomeVestors franchises often target the homes of people in vulnerable or desperate situations. These are the stories of five people who found themselves in unwanted deals with a cash home buyer.
HomeVestors Praised ProPublica’s Reporting, Then Tried to “Bury It”
The “We Buy Ugly Houses” company held a virtual meeting for its franchises to outline a plan to “minimize visibility” of our investigation.
Utah’s Secretive Medical Malpractice Panels Make It Even Harder to Sue Providers
Prelitigation panels are meant to judge the merit of a complaint against a provider ahead of a lawsuit. But some attorneys see them as “nothing more than an obstruction” for victims.
Local Reporting Network
The Powerful Forces Keeping High Interest Title Lending Alive in Georgia
TMX Finance and Select Management Resources, the owners of two major title lending brands, have been cozying up to Georgia lawmakers in a position to bottleneck industry reform.
Local Reporting Network
94 Women Allege a Utah Doctor Sexually Assaulted Them. Here’s Why a Judge Threw Out Their Case.
When dozens of women sued their OB-GYN for sexual assault, a judge said the case falls under the state’s medical malpractice law. As the women appeal, lawmakers are asking whether that law should be changed.
Local Reporting Network
Developers Found Graves in the Virginia Woods. Authorities Then Helped Erase the Historic Black Cemetery.
The cemetery’s disappearance cleared the way for the expansion of a Microsoft data center, despite layers of federal and state regulations nominally intended to protect culturally significant sites.
How Title Lending Works
Title lenders in the U.S. often use predatory practices to trap customers in high-interest loans, ProPublica recently reported. This guide will help you understand how title lending works and what your options are if you’re stuck in a contract.
Local Reporting Network
The Cold War Legacy Lurking in U.S. Groundwater
For the first time, ProPublica has cataloged cleanup efforts at the 50-plus sites where uranium was processed to fuel the nation’s nuclear arsenal. Even after regulators say cleanup is complete, polluted water and sickness are often left behind.
How Title Lenders Trap Poor Americans in Debt With Triple-Digit Interest Rates
For some Georgia residents, title pawn contracts offer a quick way to obtain desperately needed cash. But poor regulation of a confusing system traps many borrowers in high-interest debt they can’t pay off.
Local Reporting Network
“The Human Psyche Was Not Built for This”
How Republicans in Montana hijacked public health and brought a hospital to the brink