Invisible Institute

This week, we officially launched a major update to the National Police Index — a tool built to help communities, journalists, attorneys, and researchers track officers as they move between agencies.

Visit the new NPI website here: national.cpdp.co

Visit the new site here: national.cpdp.co/

The National Police Index’s brand new website provides unprecedented public access to police employment records from across the United States and allows users to track law enforcement employment records across 24 states — searchable by officer name, agency, and more. national.cpdp.co/

Requester’s Voice: The Invisible Institute’s Jamie Kalven In this conversation, we discuss Kalven’s landmark public records win in Kalven v. City of Chicago (2014), how AI can be used to analyze data received through FOIA and hopes for the future of the tran...

Maggie also interviewed Jamie Kalven, the founder of the Pulitzer Prize-winning @invisible.institute on how AI can be used to analyze data received through FOIA and hopes for the future of the transparency landscape. www.muckrock.com/news/archive...

Beneath the Surface

Check out Beneath the Surface, a data science project that investigates the intersections of gender-based violence and policing, created by @invisible.institute with support from HRDAG. www.btsurface.com

Join us and @investigatewest.bsky.social on March 12 to learn how to find police employment and misconduct data in Idaho, Oregon and Washington — and how to use it in real accountability reporting. Register here: us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

The Invisible Institute is hiring for a full-time Investigative Reporter — Invisible Institute The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond.

Join our team! The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond. Apply by Feb. 22nd! invisible.institute/jobs

Idaho won’t let public see if a cop was fired or resigned State agencies will no longer release information about whether an officer retired, resigned or was fired

NEW: After @investigatewest.bsky.social used records from the IDOC & POST Council to report on sexual abuse in Idaho prisons, and @invisible.institute published police employment history data in the state, authorities are now changing policies to conceal both sources of information from the public.

Idaho won’t let public see if a cop was fired or resigned State agencies will no longer release information about whether an officer retired, resigned or was fired

Idaho’s prison system will no longer release information about whether an officer retired, resigned or was fired. It comes after we used those records to expose alleged sexual misconduct by dozens of prison guards. w/ the @invisible.institute - www.investigatewest.org/idaho-record...

The Invisible Institute is hiring for a full-time Investigative Reporter — Invisible Institute The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond.

Join our team! The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond. Apply by Feb. 22nd! invisible.institute/jobs

Trina Reynolds-Tyler is Holding Power to Account with AI Written by Yolanda Botti-Lodovico

Trina Reynolds-Tyler, our data director, reflects on how we can use AI tools to conduct more in-depth investigations. medium.com/patrick-j-mc...

The Invisible Institute is hiring for a full-time Investigative Reporter — Invisible Institute The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond.

Join our team! The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond. Apply by Feb. 15th! invisible.institute/jobs

Join our team! The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond. Apply by Feb. 15th! invisible.institute/jobs

Join our team! The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond. Apply by Feb. 15th! invisible.institute/jobs

NABJ Chicago calls for the immediate release of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort arrested after filming Minnesota church protest • The TRiiBE Journalism organizations condemn the arrests of Don Lemon and Georgia Fort as vindictive attacks on press freedom.

"These arrests represent an unprecedented assault on the free press and the constitutional rights that protect journalists reporting on community demonstrations and actions by federal law enforcement," NABJ Chicago's statement reads.

thetriibe.com/2026/01/jour...

The Invisible Institute is hiring for a full-time Investigative Reporter — Invisible Institute The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond.

Join our team! The Invisible Institute is hiring an investigative reporter to join our team and work alongside our staff to report on police abuse, state violence, and official secrecy in Chicago and beyond. Apply by Feb. 15th!

Chicago Promoted Two Police Officers After Investigators Found They Engaged in Sexual Misconduct The Chicago Police Department’s promotions system allows officers’ disciplinary records to be ignored. Despite years of reform efforts, nothing has changed.

One officer was accused of spreading a nude photo of a woman he knew.

Another was found responsible for acts of domestic violence and sexual assault.

In spite of their disciplinary records, the Chicago Police Department promoted both of them.

With @invisible.institute

Seattle Investigated a Cop for Attending Trump’s Rally on Jan. 6. Phoenix Hired Him. Exposing the harms of the criminal legal system and elevating solutions that keep all people safe.

New in partnership with @invisible.institute and @phoenixnewtimes.com: Scotty Bach left the Seattle Police Department after an investigation found that he had attended Trump's rally at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Phoenix hired him anyway: theappeal.org/phoenix-poli...

He was at Jan. 6. The Phoenix Police Department hired him anyway Scotty Bach was a Seattle cop when he went to the "Stop the Steal" rally in D.C. Now he carries a badge in Phoenix.

In the first of three stories, @yanak.bsky.social and I report on how self-imposed pressures on the Phoenix PD pushed officials to hire increasing amounts of "lateral transfer" officers from other departments — or other states.

@invisible.institute + @theappeal.org + @phoenixnewtimes.com

He was at Jan. 6. The Phoenix Police Department hired him anyway Scotty Bach was a Seattle cop when he went to the "Stop the Steal" rally in D.C. Now he carries a badge in Phoenix.

Bach is one of six Seattle police officers whom the Seattle Police Department investigated for their presence at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. bit.ly/phoenixpolice

The Vigil Against Violence — View from the Ground For five years—from January, 1994 to December, 1998—a group of citizens gathered on the corner of 35th and State at twilight on the first Sunday of each month to read the names of those lost to violen...

For five years—from January, 1994 to December, 1998—a group of citizens gathered on the corner of 35th and State at twilight on the first Sunday of each month to read the names of those lost to violence on the South Side. Read more here: viewfromtheground.com/featured-pos...

Accusation Dismissed Archives Slow investigations and a lax disciplinary system allow Chicago police officers to escape punishment for sexual misconduct.

This is the second installment of Accusation Dismissed, our joint investigative series with @propublica.org. Read the previous reporting here: www.propublica.org/series/accusation-dismissed

Chicago Promoted Two Police Officers After Investigators Found They Engaged in Sexual Misconduct The Chicago Police Department’s promotions system allows officers’ disciplinary records to be ignored. Despite years of reform efforts, nothing has changed.

NEW: Two Chicago police officers were investigated for sexual misconduct — then promoted. It wasn’t an oversight. Despite a decades-long reform effort, the Chicago Police Department’s promotions system allows for disciplinary records to be ignored.
www.propublica.org/article/chic...

My latest investigation for @invisible.institute @propublica.org @chicago.suntimes.com

Read the story here: www.chicagomag.com/chicago-magazine/november-2025/the-video-that-shook-chicago/

Ten years ago this month, dashcam footage was released showing Laquan McDonald being shot to death by a police officer. A decade after their historic victory, the key players recount how they helped bring the transformative video to light.

Feds used chemical agents dozens of times in Chicago • The TRiiBE An investigation by reporters from six newsrooms found that agents used chemical irritants nearly 50 times during Operation Midway Blitz.

This investigation was co-produced by @blockclubchi.bsky.social , Cicero Independiente, the Investigative Project on Race and Equity, @invisible.institute, @southsideweekly.bsky.social, and @thetriibe.com.

thetriibe.com/2025/11/feds...

Feds Used Chemical Agents Dozens of Times in Chicago—Even After Judge Said To Stop An investigation by reporters from six newsrooms found that agents used chemical irritants nearly 50 times during Operation Midway Blitz.

We just published a cross-newsroom investigation into the use of tear gas and pepper spray during Operation Midway Blitz. Reporters, photographers, and editors from across Chicago reviewed dozens of videos to build a verified record of how these weapons were used in our neighborhoods.

An investigation by a group of Chicago-area newsrooms and independent journalists found that federal agents used tear gas and pepper spray at least 15 times in Brighton Park on Oct. 4 — more than the Chicago Police Department has used all year.

Read the full story here: tinyurl.com/9avc2xdf

Read the story here: bit.ly/fedsteargas