Topher Sanders

Reporter

Photo of Topher Sanders

Topher Sanders is a reporter at ProPublica covering railroad safety. Previously he covered race, inequality and the justice system. In 2019, Sanders was part of a team that was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for Public Service and won the Peabody and George Polk awards for their coverage of President Trump’s family separation policy. In 2018, he and reporter Ben Conarck received the Paul Tobenkin award for race coverage and the Al Nakkula award for police reporting for their multi-part investigation “Walking While Black,” which explored how jaywalking citations are disproportionately given to black pedestrians. His reporting has won a number of other national awards including a NABJ Award, an Online Journalism Award, the John Jay College/Harry Frank Guggenheim award for excellence in criminal justice reporting and he is a two-time winner of the Paul Tobenkin award for coverage of racial intolerance and discrimination.

In 2016 Sanders co-founded the Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting, a nonprofit working to increase the number of investigative reporters and editors of color. He is a graduate of Tuskegee University and started his journalism career at The Montgomery Advertiser in Montgomery, Alabama.

Nursing Homes Violated Basic Health Standards, Allowing the Coronavirus to Explode

Our analysis of federal inspection reports found that nine nursing homes put residents in “immediate jeopardy,” including a case where a nursing assistant fed a resident after changing soiled briefs without washing hands.

COVID-19 Put Her Husband in the ICU. She Had to Be Hospitalized Next. The State Demanded to Know: Who Would Care for Their Children?

When Laura Whalen went to a hospital with COVID-19, she brought her kids. Her husband was already in an ICU, and she couldn’t risk them exposing their grandma. But the state told her to find someone to take them or it would.

One Reason Caregivers Are Wearing Trash Bags: A U.S. Firm Had to Recall 9 Million Surgical Gowns

Cardinal Health withdrew the gowns just before the pandemic because a Chinese supplier failed to sterilize them properly. The recall has created what a hospital association official called a “ripple effect.”

Doctors Are Hoarding Unproven Coronavirus Medicine by Writing Prescriptions for Themselves and Their Families

Pharmacists told ProPublica that they are seeing unusual and fraudulent prescribing activity as doctors stockpile unproven coronavirus drugs endorsed by President Donald Trump.

As Doctors and Nurses Grow Desperate for Protective Gear, They Fear They’re Infecting Patients

The CDC and hospitals have put medical providers and patients at risk as they fail to address national supply shortages. One emergency room doctor who did not have proper equipment and learned he had COVID-19 said, “I’m sure I exposed everyone I saw.”

Congress Passed $8.3 Billion in Emergency Coronavirus Funding, but First Responders Still Can’t Buy Masks

None of Congress’ emergency coronavirus funding goes directly to first responders for the protective gear and supplies that paramedics, firefighters and EMTs need to safely fight the virus. One fire chief said they’re being forgotten.

First Responders Face High Risk but Lack Supplies and Personnel to Combat Coronavirus

Key direction from the CDC on how to protect emergency responders came after the first American case and the exposure of at least one firefighter. It’s yet another example of a fragmented and halting response at the highest levels of government.

Docenas de sacerdotes católicos con acusaciones creíbles de abuso encontraron trabajo en el extranjero, algunos con la bendición de la Iglesia

La Iglesia Católica permitió que más de cincuenta clérigos basados en los Estados Unidos se mudaran al extranjero tras enfrentar acusaciones creíbles de abuso sexual. Algunos de ellos siguieron trabajando con menores.

Dozens of Catholic Priests Credibly Accused of Abuse Found Work Abroad, Some With the Church’s Blessing

The Catholic Church allowed more than 50 U.S.-based clergy to move abroad after facing credible accusations of sexual abuse. Some continued to work with children.

Líderes católicos prometieron transparencia con el tema del abuso de menores. No han cumplido.

Tras décadas de proteger la identidad de abusadores sexuales infantiles acusados, y, con el fin de revelarlas al público, muchos líderes de la Iglesia Católica comienzan ahora a divulgar listas con sus nombres. Sin embargo, tales listas son incongruentes e incompletas, u omiten detalles críticos.

Catholic Leaders Promised Transparency About Child Abuse. They Haven’t Delivered.

After decades of shielding the identities of accused child abusers from the public, many Catholic leaders are now releasing lists of their names. But the lists are inconsistent, incomplete and omit key details.

A Lawsuit Over Ferguson’s “Debtors Prison” Drags On

The federal class-action claims thousands of people in Missouri were jailed because they couldn’t pay off fines. Four years after the suit was filed, the plaintiffs are still waiting, and wondering if the deck is stacked against them.

Senators Demand Investigation Into Sexual Abuse at Immigrant Children’s Shelters

Sens. Charles Grassley and Dianne Feinstein said they are particularly concerned that allegations of sexual assault of unaccompanied minors aren’t being properly investigated.

En los albergues para menores inmigrantes, los casos de agresión sexual se abren y cierran en un dos por tres

En distintos lugares del país, niños denuncian casos de agresión sexual en los albergues para menores inmigrantes. Alex decidió dar a conocer su situación cuando informó en el albergue que dos adolescentes mayores que él lo arrastraron a uno de los dormitorios. El incidente quedó grabado en un video de vigilancia, pero su caso nunca fue investigado. Alex no es el único.

In Immigrant Children’s Shelters, Sexual Assault Cases Are Open and Shut

Across the country, kids are reporting sexual assaults in immigrant children’s shelters. Alex decided to come forward. He told the shelter two older teens dragged him into a bedroom. There was surveillance video. But Alex's case wasn't investigated. His isn’t the only one.

Agency Policing Tent City for Immigrant Kids Lacks Experience Investigating Sex Crimes Involving Children

The Federal Protective Service, which primarily secures federal buildings, has been charged with responding to incidents at the shelter with 2,800 immigrant children in Tornillo, Texas.

“Humanitarian Crisis” Looms as Arizona Threatens to Revoke Immigrant Children Shelter Licenses

The state says Southwest Key displayed a “flippant attitude” after sexual abuse reports. But can the federal government survive without the largest operator of immigrant children shelters as Trump policies put the system near capacity?

Trabajador acusado de abusar sexualmente a ocho menores de edad en albergue para inmigrantes

Alegatos en contra de un cuidador de menores son lo último en una serie de acusaciones serias de abuso sexual en los albergues del gobierno para jóvenes inmigrantes.

Worker Charged With Sexually Molesting Eight Children at Immigrant Shelter

The allegations against the Southwest Key youth care worker are the latest in a series of serious accusations of sexual abuse inside the government’s immigrant youth shelters.

Refugios para jóvenes inmigrantes: “Si eres un depredador, es una mina de oro”

Obtuvimos informes policiales y registros de llamadas de más de dos tercios de los albergues que hospedan a niños inmigrantes. Esto es lo que muestran.

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