Bee special projects index

Last Updated 7:24 pm PDT Monday, June 30, 2008

June 22-23, 2008

Unprotected: An investigation of Sacramento County's Child Protective Services

Twelve years after the death of Adrian Conway, whose murder exposed a risky Child Protective Services policy and forced massive reform within the agency, Sacramento's most vulnerable children still are being failed at the most basic level, a five-month Bee investigation found.

Justice for K.C. Balbuena interactive graphic

Interactive graphic: Justice for K.C. Balbuena
Learn about the evidence, the players involved and trial in the case of K.C. Balbuena, a 3-year-old boy who was beaten to death in November 2005.

Online exclusive: Imprisoned abusive mother says she has new evidence
Despite changes, abused kids still die in Sacramento County system
Changes help Sacramento County's 'medically fragile' kids
How system changed after 3-year-old's sad death
Abuse case overwhelmed novice social worker
Charts: Statistics on CPS budget, staffing, recurrence of abuse, reunification and re-entry
Gallery: Faces of the unprotected
Read biographies of this project's staff

July 25: CPS criticizes comparisons

July 27: CPS noted girl's injuries in 2007 case

July 27: First test of law

April 13, 2008

Investigative Report: Nail gun safety under fire as injuries soar

With a 2 1/2-inch nail deep in his chest, construction worker Manuel Murillo slid into a pickup truck, bracing himself for a desperate seven-mile drive down a snowy Sierra road.
See how a nail gun works
Map of nail gun-related injuries
Keeping Them Safe
Just Driving Down the Street
Death in the Sierra
Hitachi model dominates market, injury reports
Decades of research and calls for more nail gun safety

Additional coverage
April 18: Feds prepare to publish warning on dangers
April 30: Bee investigation prompts nail-gun maker to halt production
May 17: Nail gun 'e-tools' in works
June 28: Nail gun makers warned in 2002 that their safety efforts fell short, documents show

September 2007 - January 2008

A darker shade of green

A fellowship from the Alicia Patterson Foundation allowed Bee reporter Tom Knudson, shown on assignment in Borneo, to explore the often-hidden costs of America's growing hunger for eco-friendly products and alternative fuels. Established in 1965 in memory of Alicia Patterson, editor and publisher of Newsday for nearly 23 years, the foundation selects six journalists each year to pursue independent projects.

January 20, 2008: Dark side of a hot biofuel
December 7, 2007: Grubbing for oil
September 23, 2007: Promises and poverty
Photo gallery: A darker shade of green
Video: Orphaned by the thirst for oil

November 2007 - February 2008

Riverfront Rising

An ongoing series on the future of the Sacramento River.

August 12-14, 2007

Tackling Life

The Bee set out to track down members of a 1992 youth football team from south Sacramento. Statistically, boys like them - minorities from poor neighborhoods - were destined for hard times. In the end, some of the teammates would beat those odds while others would not.

Ongoing

Paving the Way

Read stories in The Bee's occasional series on the Sacramento region's transportation future.

July 9-12, 2006

A Mother's Journey

When you look into the face of someone with cancer, you may have no idea what is going on beyond chemo and radiation. It's human nature to turn away. But it is real life, and it is going on in homes all over this country, where more than 1 million people are diagnosed every year. Cyndie French and her son Derek opened their lives for a year to share their story.