WEATHER ALERT
Prison deaths report finds widespread missteps, failures in latest sign of crisis in federal prisons
Read full article: Prison deaths report finds widespread missteps, failures in latest sign of crisis in federal prisonsA watchdog report has found that the kind of systemic failures that enabled the high-profile prison deaths of gangster Whitey Bulger and financier Jeffrey Epstein also contributed to the deaths of hundreds of other federal prisoners over the years.
High-profile attacks on Derek Chauvin and Larry Nassar put spotlight on violence in federal prisons
Read full article: High-profile attacks on Derek Chauvin and Larry Nassar put spotlight on violence in federal prisonsRecent assaults on two notorious, high-profile federal prisoners have renewed concerns about whether the federal Bureau of Prisons is capable of keeping people in its custody safe.
Misconduct by federal jail guards led to Jeffrey Epstein's suicide, Justice Department watchdog says
Read full article: Misconduct by federal jail guards led to Jeffrey Epstein's suicide, Justice Department watchdog saysThe Justice Department’s watchdog says negligence, misconduct and job failures enabled Jeffrey Epstein to take his own life at a federal jail in New York City while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Insider extra: How to check whether your name was used on a fraudulent SBA emergency loan
Read full article: Insider extra: How to check whether your name was used on a fraudulent SBA emergency loanThe Pandemic Response Accountability Committee found a connection of more than 69,000 “suspicious” social security numbers used to collect $5.4 billion in SBA emergency loans.
Is your name on a fraudulent SBA emergency loan? Here’s how you can check
Read full article: Is your name on a fraudulent SBA emergency loan? Here’s how you can checkThe Pandemic Response Accountability Committee found a connection of more than 69,000 “suspicious” social security numbers used to collect $5.4 billion in SBA emergency loans.
Inspectors ask for authority to go after more COVID fraud
Read full article: Inspectors ask for authority to go after more COVID fraudInspectors general need more authority to go after fraud in the COVID-19 relief programs, the independent committee overseeing federal pandemic relief spending said Tuesday.
Justice Dept., Congress probing Trump seizures of Dems' data
Read full article: Justice Dept., Congress probing Trump seizures of Dems' dataThe Justice Department’s internal watchdog has launched an investigation after revelations that former President Donald Trump’s administration secretly seized phone data from at least two House Democrats.
Watchdog probes if DOJ officials tried to overturn election
Read full article: Watchdog probes if DOJ officials tried to overturn electionFormer President Donald Trump waves to the members of the media on arrival at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Fla., Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)WASHINGTON – The Justice Department’s inspector general is launching an investigation to examine whether any former or current department officials “engaged in an improper attempt” to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Inspector General Michael Horowitz said Monday that the investigation will investigate allegations concerning the conduct of former and current Justice Department officials but will not extend to other government officials. Republican governors in Arizona and Georgia, key battleground states won by Biden, also vouched for the integrity of the elections in their states. Nearly all the legal challenges from Trump and his allies have been dismissed by judges, including two tossed by the Supreme Court, which includes three justices nominated by Trump.
Watchdogs say Trump admin limiting oversight of virus aid
Read full article: Watchdogs say Trump admin limiting oversight of virus aid(Al Drago/Pool via AP)WASHINGTON Government watchdogs are warning that legal decisions by the Trump administration could severely limit their ability to oversee more than $1 trillion in spending related to the coronavirus pandemic. In a letter to four congressional committees, a panel of inspectors general overseeing a sweeping economic rescue law said an ambiguity in the law could block the watchdogs from conducting independent oversight. This would present potentially significant transparency and oversight issues because (the spending in question) includes over $1 trillion in funding, the letter says. The agency has only provided general information, such as the total amounts of loans awarded in a given time period. A House subcommittee overseeing the coronavirus aid demanded Monday that the Trump administration and some of the nations largest banks turn over detailed information about companies that applied for and received federal loans.
Watchdog finds new problems with FBI wiretap applications
Read full article: Watchdog finds new problems with FBI wiretap applicationsIt found problems in each of the more than two dozen applications it reviewed, including “apparent errors or inadequately supported facts." Those rules, or “Woods Procedures," were developed in 2001 with a goal of minimizing errors in the surveillance applications, known by the acronym FISA. Each of the 25 other applications it reviewed contained “apparent errors or inadequately supported facts," the inspector general said. The FBI and Justice Department say they have begun making significant changes, including additional training and other safeguards meant to ensure the accuracy of surveillance applications. “As Director Wray has stressed, FISA is an indispensable tool to guard against national security threats, but we must ensure that these authorities are carefully exercised and that FISA applications are scrupulously accurate," Abbate wrote.