The collapse of a St. Louis funeral business called National Prearranged Services might represent the worst financial scandal to hit the U.S. funeral industry, with claimed losses of $600 million. From start to finish, it was a family affair, federal prosecutors and plaintiffs’ lawyers have said in court. The enterprise’s driving force was James “Doug” […]
Lance Williams
Reporter
Lance Williams is a former senior reporter for Reveal, focusing on money and politics. He has twice won journalism’s George Polk Award – for medical reporting while at The Center for Investigative Reporting, and for coverage of the BALCO sports steroid scandal while at the San Francisco Chronicle. With partner Mark Fainaru-Wada, Williams wrote the national bestseller “Game of Shadows: Barry Bonds, BALCO, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports.” In 2006, the reporting duo was held in contempt of court and threatened with 18 months in federal prison for refusing to testify about their confidential sources on the BALCO investigation. The subpoenas were later withdrawn. Williams’ reporting also has been honored with the White House Correspondents’ Association’s Edgar A. Poe Award; the Gerald Loeb Award for financial reporting; and the Scripps Howard Foundation’s Award for Distinguished Service to the First Amendment. He graduated from Brown University and UC Berkeley. He also worked at the San Francisco Examiner, the Oakland Tribune and the Daily Review in Hayward, California.
Posted inMoney and Politics
California speaker had high-profile dates with man facing fraud lawsuit
Under the direction of Tyler Cassity, the Hollywood Forever cemetery in Los Angeles – the burial place of film stars like Rudolph Valentino and Douglas Fairbanks – has become a popular venue for dance parties, concerts and fundraisers as well as funerals. Ric Francis/Associated Press For more than a year, John A. Pérez, speaker of […]
Posted inHealth Care
Hospital chain to pay $275,000 to settle federal patient-privacy case
Monica Lam/The Center for Investigative Reporting Prime Healthcare Services says it will pay $275,000 to settle allegations that it broke federal privacy laws by publicizing a patient’s confidential hospital records in an effort to rebut a news report. In a statement Tuesday, the Ontario, Calif.-based hospital chain said it admitted no wrongdoing in connection with […]
Posted inMoney and Politics
California speaker gives Assembly’s juiciest jobs to biggest fundraisers
Assemblyman Chris Holden (left), D-Pasadena, talks to Speaker John A. Pérez during a legislative session at the state Capitol in Sacramento, Calif. The freshman legislator donated 9,000 to Pérez’s targeted 2012 campaigns, and the speaker chose Holden to be majority whip.Max Whittaker / Prime In May 2012 and again in June, Speaker John A. Pérez […]
Posted inMoney and Politics
Interest groups play major role in Democrats’ campaign funds, analysis finds
When they needed political money – to make donations urged by Speaker John A. Pérez and to pay for their 2012 campaigns – Democrats in the California Assembly turned to interest groups with a big stake in state government decisions, a Center for Investigative Reporting analysis shows. For last year’s state elections, Assembly Democrats together […]
Posted inMoney and Politics
How we analyzed Democratic legislators’ fundraising
When Speaker John A. Pérez asked Democrats in the California Assembly to make political donations, how did lawmakers respond? Were lawmakers who gave large sums rewarded with powerful positions in the new Legislature? What were the outcomes for lawmakers who didn’t give? For this report on campaign finance dynamics during the 2012 state election, the […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Sports
Glare of Lance Armstrong probe falls on SF financier
Lance Armstrong in 2011Brad Camembert/Shutterstock Lance Armstrong’s “no-holds-barred” interview with Oprah Winfrey on Thursday, when he’s expected to confess to the use of performance-enhancing drugs during his professional cycling career, comes as a federal probe into his finances has widened to focus on the man who bankrolled his champion teams: legendary San Francisco financier Thomas Weisel. […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Sports
Armstrong aided by ‘professionalized’ doping program, agency says
Lance ArmstrongJoe McGowan/Flickr Cycling superstar Lance Armstrong earned his unprecedented seven victories in the Tour de France with the aid of a “sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program” on his racing team, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency said today. Eleven former cyclists from the U.S. Postal Service team have told investigators that for years, Armstrong used […]
Posted inMoney and Politics
Bain, Romney’s old firm, gives millions to Democrats
Republican presidential candidate Mitt RomneyJim Young/Reuters Bain Capital, the private equity firm co-founded by Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney – and portrayed by President Barack Obama’s supporters as a gang of corporate raiders – has pumped nearly $4.5 million into Democratic campaigns and causes, public records show. A Center for Investigative Reporting analysis of campaign […]