"Colton's Law"
"The New Cartel Corridor: Part 1"
"The New Cartel Corridor: Part 3"
The catalyst for this story was the death of Central Texas toddler, Colton Turner.
During the course of my investigation into the circumstances surrounding it, I found a gap in the Child Protective Services system. Vulnerable children were falling through by the thousands.
My discovery and subsequent exposure of that gap, through this story, combined with the toddler's family advocacy (also through our story) led to a law being filed in 2015. The premise of the law sealed the gap. It passed during the Texas state legislative session, was signed, and is now being implemented throughout Texas. Records show in the first 8 months of implementing the law, 400+ children were found.
Lawmakers and the family publicly acknowledged that my work was largely responsible for changing the system.
"The New Cartel Corridor: Part 2"
This investigative series looked at Central Texas Highways, and there safety in the wake of The Department of Public Safety sending a large amount of troopers to the U.S. / Mexico Border.
The series exposed an uptick in deaths on state hightways, and a reduction of speeding tickets on those same roads. The series also exposed a reduction in state troopers patrolling them.
Throughout the course of the investigation, I also uncovered a vulnerability on a toll road, SH-130. As law enforcement throughout that are is strapped, there is a lack of consistent presence. They acknowledge, because of that, SH-130 is quickly becoming a road used by drug cartels, as they can travel freely without fears of being caught.