The Long Afterlife of a Terrible Crime
Regina Alexander does not remember anyone telling her how her mother died; she has always known when and where it happened, and who did it. For years, though, a lot of the details remained mysterious to her.
Written for The New Yorker.
Mean, Mean
Jerry grew up in East Texas in the 1970s, and noticed his family doing some weird stuff. What a life he’s lived since.
Produced for Love + Radio.
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Play to Stay
Carlos faces a choice: become an informant for ICE or be deported. In this investigative report I dive into how Immigration and Customs Enforcement uses undocumented immigrants as snitches to find others. For the first time, the deportation arm of ICE admitted to me they use this tactic.
Written for The Intercept.
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Punking a Punk Rock Church “Cult”
One day in May 1999, Cleetus Adrian was watching The Apostle, the 1997 film starring Robert Duvall, when—as he tells it—he heard God tell him to become a pastor. Adrian’s father was a Nazarene pastor, and he already attended his father’s church. But when God calls, you answer.
Written for Topic.
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The Chili Powder Cheat
Texas: the land of BBQ, breakfast tacos… and of course Tex-Mex. But what if we told you Tex-Mex wasn’t created by a Texan or Mexican, but a German immigrant? On this episode, we tell you the story of William Gebhardt, the inventor of chili powder.
Produced for Gravy.
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College Behind Bars
To get to the 99A college prep English class at California’s San Quentin State Prison, you pass through two security checks, two gates and a very thick, very old metal door that looks medieval. You walk into a courtyard surrounded by guard towers. Inmates in pale blue scrubs with the word “PRISONER” printed on the back in bright yellow are hanging around, playing baseball and chatting.
Produced for APM Reports.
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Alex Jones Is His Own Worst Enemy
Alex Jones sat alone in the courtroom, preparing for the stage. He ran his fingers through his dirty blonde hair, staring at his reflection in the computer screen in front of him. Most people know Jones as the InfoWars host who shouts, takes off his shirt, and peddles conspiracy theories—like his belief that the Sandy Hook massacre could have been a hoax, which has prompted listeners to send death threats to parents of the victims for more than four years.
Written for Esquire.
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A Lack of Hate Crime Prosecutions
Neither Reyna’s assault, nor Amin-Akbari’s beating nor Gaspari’s shooting were successfully prosecuted as hate crimes. Indeed, a ProPublica analysis shows that such cases in Texas almost never are.
Written for ProPublica.
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