INVESTIGATION FILE

The Desmond Files

Dossier: Jim Desmond

NEW HERE? Start with The Wiring → Part 4: The Supervisors

REPORTS IN THIS FILE

01
The Desmond Files

The Developer Donor Base: How Real Estate Money Built Jim Desmond's Political Career

How Real Estate Money Built Jim Desmond's Political Career

The donors who funded his campaigns got the votes that funded their projects.
02
The Desmond Files

Building in the Fire Zone: How $170,000, a Silenced Fire District, and a Unanimous Vote Put 453 Homes at the End of a Two-Lane Road

How $170K, a Silenced Fire District, and a Unanimous Vote Put 453 Homes at the End of a Two-Lane Road

The fire chief said it was too dangerous. Two weeks later, he told the Board it was safe.
03
The Desmond Files

The Words Were Not His Own: How Industry Ghostwrites Ballot Language, Staffs the Office, and Pays After the Vote

How Industry Ghostwrites Ballot Language, Staffs the Office, and Pays After the Vote

The ballot measure read like it was written by voters. It was written by the industry.
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