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How Massachusetts spent nearly $1 billion sheltering homeless families and migrants
A Globe review of state contracts offers a glimpse at the nearly $1 billion emergency shelter system the state is now operating for homeless families, about half of them migrants from other countries.

Mold cleanup forces all families out of Catholic Charities Inn
Homeless families and migrants are being relocated from one of the state's emergency shelters.

State placed migrant children in hotels with registered sex offenders, Globe investigation finds

After the Globe identified sex offenders in hotels housing new migrants and homeless families, the state said it is moving the individuals.

State relocating families in Boston emergency shelter due to mold infestation

The motel is one of the scores of sites utilized to accommodate a growing number of families with nowhere to live, amid a surge of thousands of migrants making their way to Massachusetts.

Pursuit of the Lewiston shooter proved to be a case study in how not to prevent a mass shooting

176 days, 25 officers: Police were repeatedly warned about Robert Card's erratic behavior, his weapons, and his threats. This is an account of those warnings.

More Globe investigations

Chickenpox outbreak at Roxbury migrant shelter sparks concern: ‘This is a precautionary tale’

Activists and public health experts worry about public health conditions for new migrants after a half-dozen cases of chickenpox spread at a shelter in Roxbury.

A Globe podcast investigated the Carol Stuart murder. Then Boston responded.

Globe reporters were in the room when Michelle Wu told Boston’s Black community, “I am so sorry for the pain that you have carried.” Listen to a bonus episode of the "Murder in Boston" podcast.
LISTEN

‘Long Overdue’: Murder in Boston, episode 10

Days after the podcast wrapped, Mayor Wu called a press conference. She had a major announcement about the Stuart case.

A father did everything he could to protect his son. Until he couldn’t.

Kevin Berner told Braintree police that a nude photo of his 12-year-old son was circulating among other schoolchildren. Berner and his wife have been on a journey since, fighting for accountability.
REDDIT AMA

‘Who was the hardest interview to land?’ and other questions about the Globe’s reexamination of the Charles Stuart case answered

The team of Globe reporters that reexamined the Charles Stuart case hosted an Ask Me Anything session on Reddit focused on their reporting.

Milton voters will have final say on controversial zoning plan on Feb. 13

Milton Town Meeting approved the zoning plan on Dec. 11 by a 158-76 vote, over the objections of opponents who argued the town was moving too quickly for such a momentous change.
Winner of the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting

Blind Spot

An 11-month Globe investigation found that people nationwide are dying in crashes caused by drivers who should have had their licenses suspended. One in 10 US drivers has at least one offense — from speeding to vehicular homicide — that isn’t reflected on their driving record.
Documentary Short: Blind Spot
A deep look into the bureaucratic negligence that has allowed drivers with menacing traffic records to keep their licenses. (Produced by Caitlin Healy, Brendan McCarthy & Anush Elbakyan. Shot & Edited by Caitlin Healy)

Spotlight

Fate and the fallen star

Scientist David Sabatini is hoping for a comeback after he was ousted amid sexual harassment allegations. The case raises hard questions: Is there room for lesser penalties in such complex cases? Did Sabatini deserve a second chance?

A broken bond, a shaken citadel of science

Kristin Knouse and David Sabatini, both biologists, had an intimate relationship that bridged boundaries — she is young in her career, he is globally renowned — and broke the rules at Cambridge’s Whitehead Institute. After Knouse alleged harassment and other complaints emerged, an investigation rocked Whitehead, forced out Sabatini and damaged all involved. Did it have to end this way?

A celebrated surgeon, a trail of secrets and death

Dr. Yvon Baribeau set a record for malpractice settlements, and many colleagues tried desperately to stop him. But hospital executives let him go on and on.

Timeline: What the public didn’t know about Dr. Yvon Baribeau

Catholic Medical Center executives promoted Dr. Yvon Baribeau as a top cardiac surgeon. In reality, they knew for years that the doctor had a troubled work history.

Unfinished Justice

The state’s high court in 2017 struck down a murder law that had condemned men who never killed to die behind bars. But what about those already facing that dire penalty? They are waiting.

How Brigham Health helped create a Chinese hospital for elites — and almost nobody came

In a deal worth millions with Chinese developer Evergrande, a Harvard teaching hospital risked its reputation on what would become a near-empty shell.

The taking of Cell 15

A look at secrecy, assaults, and accountability inside Massachusetts’ maximum-security prison.

Failure of command: The inside story of the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home outbreak

Governor Charlie Baker and a top deputy played key roles in events leading up to the devastating COVID-19 outbreak at the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, but publicly faulted others. A Globe investigation examines the decisions that left the home all but leaderless when the coronavirus stormed in.

Boston’s hospital chiefs moonlight on corporate boards at rates far beyond the national level

Hospital chiefs and trustees defend this as boosting public-private partnerships, but critics say these board positions — some paying millions of dollars — raise troubling issues of conflict of interest and hospital priorities.

Last Words: Is death the great equalizer?

Quite the contrary, a Spotlight investigation shows. Death exposes in high relief the layers of inequities, in race and income, care and opportunity, that shape life down to its final hours. It is a truth the pandemic has only underscored — one hard to see, because it is so much easier to look away.

Seeing Red: A Globe Spotlight report on Boston’s crippling traffic

We endure some of the nation’s worst rush hour traffic. Our aging transit system is maddeningly unreliable. It is a crisis — a very slow moving crisis — that puts our region’s economic prosperity at risk. Who is to blame? Can anything be done? The Globe Spotlight Team investigates.

Inside the secret courts of Massachusetts

The Spotlight Team delves into the darkest corner of the Massachusetts criminal justice system, where the quality of justice can depend on where you live and who you know.

Gladiator

How can a Super Bowl starting lineman become a convicted murderer in only a few years? In a new investigation, The Boston Globe's Spotlight Team looks hard at the crisis facing football through the lens of Aaron Hernandez's life and terrible crimes.

Boston. Racism. Image. Reality.

In a series that can only scratch the surface of this complex topic, we tried to answer a question so critical to the city's identity and future: Does Boston still deserve its reputation as a place unwelcoming to Black people? If so, why — and how — can the situation be improved?

See more Spotlight projects ⟶