Topher Sanders
I report on injustice of any kind, but particularly in race, inequality and the legal system.
Need to Get in Touch?
What I Cover
I report on injustice of any kind, but particularly in race, inequality and the legal system. I’m focused on how the second Trump administration will impact justice in America, but I’m always looking for under-covered stories that affect everyday folks.
My Background
In 2023, I was part of a team of reporters that exposed the challenges communities face when freight trains block railroad crossings for days, endangering schoolchildren. Before that, my colleagues and I produced the multipart investigation “Walking While Black,” which explored how jaywalking citations are disproportionately given to Black pedestrians, and was part of a team that probed President Trump’s family separation policy. The former won the Al Nakkula award while the latter won Peabody and George Polk awards and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.
My work has spurred grand juries and investigations into prosecutors, changed federal rules and forced police departments to drop charges against the unlawfully arrested.
In 2016 I co-founded the Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting, a nonprofit working to increase the number of investigative reporters and editors of color. I am a graduate of Tuskegee University and I started my journalism career at the Montgomery Advertiser in Alabama.
You can send me feedback, story tips and documents via email at [email protected], or by Signal or WhatsApp at 904-254-0393
Over a Dozen Black and Latino Men Accused a Cop of Humiliating, Invasive Strip Searches. The NYPD Kept Promoting Him.
The men said Assistant Chief Christopher McCormack touched them inappropriately during searches or ordered others to do so.
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.
Emergency Medical Responders Are Stretched for 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.
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.