Deaths and devastating injuries. A litany of labor violations. Drivers forced to urinate in their vans. Here is how Amazon’s gigantic, decentralized, next-day delivery network brought chaos, exploitation, and danger to communities across America.Valdimar Gray was delivering packages for Amazon at the height of the pre-Christmas rush when his three-ton van barreled into an 84-year-old grandmother, crushing her diaphragm, shattering several ribs, and fracturing her skull.“Oh my god!” screamed Gray as he leaped out of his van. It was a bright, clear afternoon on Dec. 22, 2016, and the...…Deaths and devastating injuries. A litany of labor violations. Drivers forced to urinate in their vans. Here is how Amazon’s gigantic, decentralized, next-day delivery network brought chaos, exploitation, and danger to communities across America.Valdimar Gray was delivering packages for Amazon at the height of the pre-Christmas rush when his three-ton van barreled into an 84-year-old grandmother, crushing her diaphragm, shattering several ribs, and fracturing her skull.“Oh my god!” screamed Gray as he leaped out of his van. It was a bright, clear afternoon on Dec. 22, 2016, and the...WW…

Jon Schaffer, who wore an Oath Keepers hat on Jan. 6, has been doing “debrief” interviews and is a potential cooperator, according to a court filing that was mistakenly posted publicly.WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors are in “advanced plea negotiations” with an alleged Capitol rioter with Oath Keeper ties in exchange for his cooperation with the ongoing investigation of the Jan. 6 Capitol insurgency, a new filing in federal court revealed Monday.The public filing had apparently been made in error — prosecutors had intended to file it under seal because the defendant, Jon Schaffer, was...…Jon Schaffer, who wore an Oath Keepers hat on Jan. 6, has been doing “debrief” interviews and is a potential cooperator, according to a court filing that was mistakenly posted publicly.WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors are in “advanced plea negotiations” with an alleged Capitol rioter with Oath Keeper ties in exchange for his cooperation with the ongoing investigation of the Jan. 6 Capitol insurgency, a new filing in federal court revealed Monday.The public filing had apparently been made in error — prosecutors had intended to file it under seal because the defendant, Jon Schaffer, was...WW…

Roughly 800 people entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, but few were arrested on the spot.The criminal probe into the Jan. 6 insurrection has been described by the Justice Department as likely "one of the largest in American history." But as the investigation matures, it’s becoming increasingly clear that many of the roughly 800 people who breached the nation’s Capitol may never face any legal consequences because they were allowed to simply walk away from the scene.The US Capitol Police that day, while the District of Columbia’s Metropolitan Police Department for unlawful entry. Since then, more...…Roughly 800 people entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, but few were arrested on the spot.The criminal probe into the Jan. 6 insurrection has been described by the Justice Department as likely "one of the largest in American history." But as the investigation matures, it’s becoming increasingly clear that many of the roughly 800 people who breached the nation’s Capitol may never face any legal consequences because they were allowed to simply walk away from the scene.The US Capitol Police that day, while the District of Columbia’s Metropolitan Police Department for unlawful entry. Since then, more...WW…

Her attorney argues in a new court motion that she is no threat and should be allowed to go home with a monitoring device.Jessica Watkins, an Oath Keeper charged with conspiring to storm the US Capitol, has asked to be released from jail pending trial, alleging that she has been “treated harshly” and is at “particular risk in custody” because she is transgender. She also argues she is no threat to the public and went to the Capitol only because “she believed that the president of the United States was calling upon her.”Watkins, 38, a former Army ranger , was “forced out of the military...…Her attorney argues in a new court motion that she is no threat and should be allowed to go home with a monitoring device.Jessica Watkins, an Oath Keeper charged with conspiring to storm the US Capitol, has asked to be released from jail pending trial, alleging that she has been “treated harshly” and is at “particular risk in custody” because she is transgender. She also argues she is no threat to the public and went to the Capitol only because “she believed that the president of the United States was calling upon her.”Watkins, 38, a former Army ranger , was “forced out of the military...WW…

Right-wing extremists used Facebook to call for the overthrow of the government and storm the US Capitol in the period leading up to the Jan. 6 insurrection, according to a new report.Right-wing extremists used Facebook to make calls to overthrow the government and storm the US Capitol in the period leading up to a violent insurrection on Jan. 6, a tech watchdog group has found, contradicting attempts by the social media company to downplay the role of its platform in the affair.A from Tech Transparency Project (TTP) shared with BuzzFeed News uncovered a slew of specific threats made in...…Right-wing extremists used Facebook to call for the overthrow of the government and storm the US Capitol in the period leading up to the Jan. 6 insurrection, according to a new report.Right-wing extremists used Facebook to make calls to overthrow the government and storm the US Capitol in the period leading up to a violent insurrection on Jan. 6, a tech watchdog group has found, contradicting attempts by the social media company to downplay the role of its platform in the affair.A from Tech Transparency Project (TTP) shared with BuzzFeed News uncovered a slew of specific threats made in...WW…

The Silicon Valley engineer, who had no background in medical supplies but was recommended by the White House, never delivered the ventilators.We may all be at home, but that hasn’t stopped our reporters from breaking exclusive stories like this one. To help keep this news free, and sign up for our newsletter, .On March 27, as emergency rooms in New York and across the country began filling with patients struggling to breathe, President Donald Trump posted on Twitter to urge Ford and General Motors to “START MAKING VENTILATORS, NOW!” that the tweet attracted struck an equally urgent tone:...…The Silicon Valley engineer, who had no background in medical supplies but was recommended by the White House, never delivered the ventilators.We may all be at home, but that hasn’t stopped our reporters from breaking exclusive stories like this one. To help keep this news free, and sign up for our newsletter, .On March 27, as emergency rooms in New York and across the country began filling with patients struggling to breathe, President Donald Trump posted on Twitter to urge Ford and General Motors to “START MAKING VENTILATORS, NOW!” that the tweet attracted struck an equally urgent tone:...WW…

New documents and interviews reveal how time after time, the e-commerce giant put speed, profit, and explosive growth before public safety.This article is copublished with , a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up for ProPublica’s newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox as soon as they are published.As they prepared for last year’s holiday rush, managers at Amazon unveiled a plan to make the company’s sprawling delivery network the safest in the world.Amazon, which ships millions of packages a day to homes and businesses across the US, had seen a...…New documents and interviews reveal how time after time, the e-commerce giant put speed, profit, and explosive growth before public safety.This article is copublished with , a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up for ProPublica’s newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox as soon as they are published.As they prepared for last year’s holiday rush, managers at Amazon unveiled a plan to make the company’s sprawling delivery network the safest in the world.Amazon, which ships millions of packages a day to homes and businesses across the US, had seen a...WW…

New details have emerged as part of a guilty plea by one of the defendants, and they include the allegation that extremists also discussed the best way to attack a Secret Service convoy.A group of men who allegedly last year to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer practiced how to storm the state’s Capitol and discussed attacking Secret Service convoys with a 37 mm projectile launcher, according to documents filed in federal court Wednesday.The new details were revealed as part of a filed when one of the six defendants in the case, Ty Garbin, agreed to cooperate with the ongoing federal...…New details have emerged as part of a guilty plea by one of the defendants, and they include the allegation that extremists also discussed the best way to attack a Secret Service convoy.A group of men who allegedly last year to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer practiced how to storm the state’s Capitol and discussed attacking Secret Service convoys with a 37 mm projectile launcher, according to documents filed in federal court Wednesday.The new details were revealed as part of a filed when one of the six defendants in the case, Ty Garbin, agreed to cooperate with the ongoing federal...WW…

AdvertisementThe federal government on Friday released a special bumper crop of interviews conducted as part of former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and alleged attempts by President Donald Trump to obstruct that inquiry.Each month, the Justice Department releases hundreds of pages of to BuzzFeed News and CNN in response to a lawsuit filed under the Freedom of Information Act. Collectively, the documents show what hundreds of people told the special counsel’s office behind closed doors during its two-year probe, which began in...…AdvertisementThe federal government on Friday released a special bumper crop of interviews conducted as part of former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and alleged attempts by President Donald Trump to obstruct that inquiry.Each month, the Justice Department releases hundreds of pages of to BuzzFeed News and CNN in response to a lawsuit filed under the Freedom of Information Act. Collectively, the documents show what hundreds of people told the special counsel’s office behind closed doors during its two-year probe, which began in...WW…

Yaron Oren-Pines promised 1,450 ventilators but never delivered. Six months later, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is calling it a “scam” and said law enforcement is investigating.The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus. To help keep this news free, and sign up for our newsletter, .In late March, a Silicon Valley engineer tweeted an offer to sell ventilators to President Donald Trump, and within days New York state, facing soaring infection rates, paid the man $69 million for devices he never delivered. More than six months later,...…Yaron Oren-Pines promised 1,450 ventilators but never delivered. Six months later, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is calling it a “scam” and said law enforcement is investigating.The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus. To help keep this news free, and sign up for our newsletter, .In late March, a Silicon Valley engineer tweeted an offer to sell ventilators to President Donald Trump, and within days New York state, facing soaring infection rates, paid the man $69 million for devices he never delivered. More than six months later,...WW…