Managing editor investigations The Center Square. Author "The Last Story: The Murder of an Investigative Journalist in Las Vegas." Posts reflect my own views.
Las Vegas, NV
Joined June 2014
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Art Kane retweeted
Companies with business before Los Angeles donated millions at Mayor Karen Bass’ request.
Now, California’s ethics watchdog is reviewing three complaints involving donations she solicited, including issues exposed by The Center Square’s reporting.
Art Kane retweeted
The vehicle handover happened 8 days after @thecentersquare first reported that the state Department of Human Services, which oversees child protective services, bought a 2026 SUV at a cost of $38,700, but paid nearly $916,000 extra to have a cell-site simulator installed.
That's a device typically used by law enforcement that impersonates a cell phone tower to trick phones in its vicinity into connecting, allowing an operator to track phone locations and potentially intercept calls and texts.
Human Services is a social services agency tasked with investigating alleged child abuse and managing the foster care system, and several lawmakers questioned whether it should be wielding a stealth tool that requires a judge to sign off on a search warrant. /3
thecentersquare.com/georgia/…
Art Kane retweeted
JUST IN: Georgia's child welfare agency bought a $954,578 SUV with a cell phone surveillance tool.
Eight days after The Center Square reported the purchase, state investigators took possession.
ALT Government building dome with text overlay on a blue sky.
ALT Text on the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's cell-site simulator acquisition.
Art Kane retweeted
UPDATE ON GEORGIA'S $1 MILLION CHEVY: Georgia's child welfare agency no longer has its Chevrolet Traverse spy vehicle, bought with nearly $955,000 in taxpayer money and equipped with a powerful cell phone surveillance tool.
On Tuesday, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation took the keys, a spokeswoman confirmed for @thecentersquare.
State officials will not explain the reasons for the handover, or who ordered it. And what few pieces of information The Center Square obtained on Wednesday conflicted.
🧵and story linked below ⬇️/1
Art Kane retweeted
Georgia's secretary of state calls Mark Davis's voting figures "not even factually based."
But a judge called his efforts with a former FBI agent "reasonable."
The court record complicates the state's dismissal without validating his numbers.
ALT Man in blue shirt stands outside a building with arms crossed.
ALT Text on potential illegal ballots in Georgia's election.
Art Kane retweeted
A Michigan nonprofit receiving government funding is facing questions about its financial reporting. The Center Square found additional discrepancies after an accounting firm amended the organization's tax filings.
Art Kane retweeted
Six years ago, following the 2020 election, analyst Mark Davis set out to prove illegal voting was happening in Georgia, teaming up with ex-FBI agent Derek Somerville. Their goal was to not only identify possible residency violations, but to challenge those voters' eligibility before they voted again in the January 2021 senatorial runoff.
Somerville used networking and social media to recruit volunteers to file those challenges in 40 counties.
"The net net," Somerville told @thecentersquare, "was 39,141 voters who cast a ballot where there was probable cause to believe that they no longer resided in the residence where they were registered to vote. So in other words, they were casting a ballot that, per state law, was not eligible." /3
Art Kane retweeted
A refugee nonprofit's revenue plunged 44%. Its CEO's compensation fell just 2%.
ALT Text detailing CEO salary and nonprofit revenue at Global Refuge in 2025.
Art Kane retweeted
How did a nonprofit receive $23.6 million in federal funding while auditors repeatedly flagged accounting problems?
Art Kane retweeted
A Detroit nonprofit's tax filings reported more than $500,000 in annual compensation for a pastor who says he received nothing.
ALT Church building with text about nonprofit auditing.
ALT Text detailing a nonprofit's audit and IRS filings.
Art Kane retweeted
The nonprofit blamed staffing turnover for its accounting weaknesses, while a former finance director said its finance team shrank from five employees to two.
Read the full investigation:
thecentersquare.com/national…
Art Kane retweeted
INVESTIGATION: A D.C. nonprofit received $23.6 million in federal funding over four years despite auditors flagging accounting problems in three of those years.
Auditors found serious internal-control weaknesses in 2022 and 2023, including a request for more federal funds without accounting for $200,000 already received.
Art Kane retweeted
How does a $39,000 SUV become a $950,000 purchase? Records show Georgia's child welfare agency acquired a vehicle equipped with an expensive cell-site simulator.
Art Kane retweeted
INVESTIGATION: Georgia paid $954,578 for a Chevrolet Traverse. The SUV itself cost about $38,700.
ALT Atlanta skyline with tall buildings and statue in the foreground.
ALT Text about Georgia DHS spending on a surveillance-equipped vehicle.