Behind the Investigation with Atlanta News First

A pending lawsuit claims a publishing giant sold defective instructional material to school districts for decades, allegedly hurting childrens' ability to read. An Atlanta News First investigation uncovered the same publisher sold its curriculum in metro Atlanta, including Gwinnett County, the state’s largest school district. Now, the mother of an autistic son is fearful these instructional materials may have affected his mental health.

Atlanta News First Investigates has found in 2024 when kids entered state custody, “abandonment” was considered a factor at least 539 times. In 2023, that number was 464 times. Here is the story of a Fulton County mom who is facing the termination of her parental rights after her autistic son was arrested by police, and who is now fighting to get him the care she said he needs.

Atlanta News First Investigates discovered sophisticated thieves are able to generate realistic VINs that properly decode to the correct make, model, and year of the stolen vehicle. They then use forged documents to obtain real car titles from state and county tag offices nationwide.

Award-winning consumer reporter Harry Samler - also known as Better Call Harry - has launched his own series of podcasts. In episode one, Harry talks with Jason Wiggam, a veteran metro Atlanta tax attorney, about everything you need to know when filing your taxes ... and even how to get them done for free.

School districts across Georgia are scrambling to meet a July deadline to train thousands of teachers in a new set of curricula intended to help improve literacy rates.

The mandate is connected to a new law passed by the state legislature in 2023 intended to overhaul how children learn to read to address a state-wide education crisis: By fourth grade, only one in three children can read proficiently in Georgia, according to a state assessment.

A Georgia lawmaker is trying to pump the brakes on a long-time police practice that generates millions for small cities off the backs of drivers. The proposed legislation follows a series of Atlanta News First investigations published over the past year entitled Taxation through Citation that uncovered at least 17 municipalities relying on 25 percent or more of their revenue from fines and forfeitures.

North Georgia residents are one step closer to getting answers about how chemical contamination in their drinking water may have impacted their health. Emory University's pilot study is in direct response to a 2023 Atlanta News First investigation which tested 11 Rome residents for PFAS and other 'forever chemicals.'

Families who’ve had their food benefits stolen this month are now finding out there’s no money left to replace them after federal funds to reimburse stolen benefits ended in December, but the fraud is increasing at an alarming rate.

An Atlanta News First investigation found thieves are swiping millions in federal taxpayer dollars, while families across the country go hungry, and there’s no mandatory plan in place to make the cards more secure.

According to the Georgia Department of Education , 19,888 of Atlanta Public School students missed more than 15 days of class in 2023. A child is considered chronically absent when they’ve missed 10 percent of their school year.

An analysis by Atlanta News First Investigates revealed this school system saw metro Atlanta’s highest rate of absenteeism in 2023, 35 percent. Here is one family's story of their fight for education.