Name: Courier Journal wins Pulitzer Prize for coverage of Matt Bevin's controversial pardons
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Courier Journal wins Pulitzer Prize for coverage of Matt Bevin's controversial pardons

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Get the newsShare This Story!Let friends in your social network know what you are reading aboutThe Courier Journal has won its 11th Pulitzer Prize for its breaking news coverage of former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin's pardons.A link has been sent to your friend's email address.A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Join the ConversationTo find out more about Facebook commenting please read theWelcome to our new and improved comments.This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.You will need to register before adding a comment.Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.Please be polite.It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.If you see comments in violation of our , please report them.CLOSEA look at Louisville's hometown newspaper and its 150-year journey of bringing the news to you.The Courier Journal has been awarded the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news for its unrelenting coverage of more than that former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin issued during his final&nbsp;weeks in office.The awarded The Courier Journal staff first place "for its rapid coverage of hundreds of last-minute pardons by Kentucky’s governor, showing how the process was marked by opacity, racial disparities and violations of legal norms.""This is an incredible honor rooted to three journalistic pillars: Get the story right, get it first and leave no stone unturned in reporting and telling it," Courier Journal Editor Richard Green said Monday. "There’s never been an editor more proud of his entire staff than I am this afternoon."The Courier beat out finalists&nbsp;The Los Angeles Times for its coverage of a "devastating California boat fire that killed 34 people" and&nbsp;The Washington Post for its reporting of "back-to-back mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, that contextualized these events for a national audience."This is The Courier Journal's 11th Pulitzer Prize and its first since 2005.Defeated for reelection by Attorney General Andy Beshear in last November's general election, Bevin engaged in a flurry of 11th-hour pardons and commutations for convicted felons, several of whom he said suffered miscarriages of justice.Congratulations to . — The Pulitzer Prizes (@PulitzerPrizes) The Courier Journal's reporting on Bevin's acts of clemency ignited an immediate firestorm among victims' families, law enforcement and lawmakers, both Democrats and Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who &nbsp;&nbsp;The Courier Journal found that the family of Patrick Brian Baker, whom Bevin pardoned for homicide and other crimes in a fatal 2014 Knox County home invasion,&nbsp;to retire debt&nbsp;from Bevin’s 2015 gubernatorial campaign.The next day, Melinda Mills, the sister of Donald Mills, who was gunned down in the home invasion, told The Courier Journal that&nbsp;Bevin issued pardons to other , such as Micah Schoettle, who&nbsp;was found guilty of raping a 9-year-old child in Kenton County and sentenced last year&nbsp;to 23 years&nbsp;in prison.He also pardoned Dayton Jones, who pleaded guilty in 2016 to using a sex toy to in Hopkinsville&nbsp;so violently that the victim's bowel was perforated.Jones was sentenced to 15 years in prison before Bevin issued his release. Last month, he was federally for that same incident.The actions also prompted current Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron to to look into the decisions. In late December 2019, The Courier Journal reported that the FBI was conducting inquiries about the pardons.More than a dozen Courier Journal staffers were involved in the coverage, which included an ambitious digital presentation of Bevin's actions and his explanations and a racial breakdown of those whose&nbsp;sentences he commuted. Two days before Christmas Eve, the newsroom also produced an eight-page special section.&nbsp;The coverage was exhaustive, comprehensive and revelatory, Green said.“As details started to erupt from Frankfort about Matt Bevin’s commutations and we were digging into them, the former governor called our reporter, Joe Sonka, and challenged him," Green said."‘If you truly care about the truth of that story … stay with it, stay on it, ask a lot of questions,' Bevin said.&nbsp;'You'll find a lot of people both inside and outside of Kentucky are very aware of that case.’"And he added: 'If it's done, right, I'm telling you, you could win a Pulitzer Prize. … I don't know if you write well enough or do research well enough to do it, but if somebody had that ability …'“So we did, and today, we won a Pulitzer Prize.”Green added:&nbsp;“I have to presume that anytime a newsroom wins a Pulitzer, it’s an amazing feeling."But to hear the news today — with my staff working remotely and all of us exhausted from covering the coronavirus pandemic, which is the biggest story of our generation &nbsp;— it means more than words can express," Green said."This is for the taxpayers of Kentucky who demand accountability and public trust from their elected officials.”The Courier Journal received applause from many, including Rachel Maddow, an MSNBC television host and political commentator."(Bevin's) prediction came&nbsp;true in the best possible way: A Pulitzer Prize," Maddow said . "Best new thing in the world today."Maddow also encouraged her viewers to "subscribe to your local paper if you possibly can."You can watch the full episode or skip to the 43 minute mark to see her shout out to The Courier Journal.On Tuesday morning, U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth also praised The Courier Journal, saying he is "thrilled" to see "outstanding journalism" recognized&nbsp;"at this time of dangerous assaults on the free press.""They told us the truth and did it well," Yarmuth, a Democrat from Louisville, wrote in a tweet.&nbsp;"And that is no small thing."At this time of dangerous assaults on the free press, I am thrilled to see the Pulitzer recognize the outstanding journalism of and could not be prouder of LEO alums and . They told us the truth and did it well. And that is no small thing. — Rep. John Yarmuth (@RepJohnYarmuth) Contact Ben Tobin at &nbsp;and&nbsp;502-582-4181 or follow on Twitter .&nbsp;Support strong local journalism by subscribing today:&nbsp;.Read or Share this story: https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2020/05/04/courier-journal-wins-pulitzer-prize-coverage-bevin-pardons/3080365001/to help improve our site experience!More Stories

Get the newsShare This Story!Let friends in your social network know what you are reading aboutThe Courier Journal has won its 11th Pulitzer Prize for its breaking news coverage of former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin's pardons.A link has been sent to your friend's email address.A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Join the ConversationTo find out more about Facebook commenting please read theWelcome to our new and improved comments.This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.You will need to register before...

Courier Journal wins Pulitzer Prize for coverage of Matt Bevin's controversial pardons

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