Sammy Sussman
@Sammy_Sussman
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Freelance investigative reporter | Please get in touch: or sammybsussman2 @gmail .com
New York City, NY
Joined December 2017
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This
@AP_Images
photo is so wild: Nancy Pelosi intently reading
@JonathanBlitzer
’s
@NewYorker
article about “What Kevin McCarthy Will Do To Gain Power” during one of today’s three votes in which McCarthy was unable to gain the speakership.
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BREAKING: I’ve heard from sources Matthew Muckey and Liang Wang have been suspended from
@nyphil
rehearsals and performances for an indeterminate period of time. A statement to this effect has been sent to some reporters.
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I’m told that Liang Wang and Matthew Muckey did not play in last night’s
@nyphil
concert. (Muckey was supposed to play principal trumpet on at least one piece; Wang has been absent since earlier this week.)
Musicians Liang Wang and Matthew Muckey were fired from the New York Philharmonic for sexual misconduct. Why are they back playing with the orchestra?
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New: Cara Kizer was in Seattle this weekend to play with the
@seattlesymphony
. The symphony's musicians put out this on their Instagram account. Kizer is near the middle of this photo.
(I've redacted comments and likes from people I follow, thus the black boxes.)
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#BREAKING
: Through a spokesperson,
@nyphil
released the following statement: "For the time being, Matthew Muckey and Liang Wang will not be at rehearsals or performances."
This comment was shared with
@NYPMusicians
on Sat, 1 day after the
@vulture
/
@NYMag
article was published.
5
23
107
BREAKING: Robert Beaser has been removed from
@JuilliardSchool
's faculty after an investigation found he "interfered with individuals' academic work" and engaged in "an unreported relationship."
"Beaser repeatedly misrepresented facts about his actions," the investigation notes
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For those that don't have time to read the full article, here’s a brief Twitter thread of what we (
@vanmusicmag
@irworkshop
) found:
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I wanted to share a bit more about the process behind this reporting. I started emailing Matthew Muckey and Liang Wang in September seeking an interview. I sent five emails over five months; despite reading the emails, I got no responses.
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#BREAKING
: A new outside investigator has been retained by
@nyphil
to investigate allegations of sexual misconduct against their musicians. People who speak with the investigator are being told that their statements may also be shared with
@Local_802_AFM
counsel.
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21
87
Yesterday,
@UMichPrezOno
had time to attend the Detroit Economic Club forum. He was interviewed for 40 minutes about the UM football time.
One would think that he could afford at least the same amount of time to his student paper,
@michigandaily
.
@zaynasyed_
@michigandaily
@UMichPrezOno
"Unfortunately, the president needs to cancel the interview for Dec. 6 and has no additional availability in December."
This meeting was scheduled in Sept. and reporters have been prepping for the conversation. In my tenure, meetings have been rescheduled but never canceled.
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#BREAKING
:
@nyphil
has released the following email sent to the orchestra's board, musicians and staff by their president, Gary Ginstling.
To summarize:
@nyphil
has retained
@JennerBlockLLP
to investigate the orchestra's recent culture. The results will be released publicly.
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Last December, I reported on sexual misconduct allegations against former members of Juilliard’s composition faculty. That reporting led me to last Friday’s story — some of the women that spoke out for the Juilliard story have now circulated this petition about the Philharmonic.
Many of you have commented on the intolerable situation at the
@nyphil
and Local 802 revealed in
@Sammy_Sussman
's article in New York Magazine. Please please please add your name to this petition and pass it along to all of your contacts:
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75
NEW:
• Kizer has been released from her NDA after the former
@nyphil
president met her in person
• Interviews for
@nyphil
's culture investigation finished in June
• Three women have come forward in investigation into allegations against
@nyphil
musicians
Facing scandal and the disruption of Gary Ginstling’s resignation, the New York Philharmonic looks for a leader — and a resolution to the worst crisis in its history.
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NEW: Slipped Disc is reporting that Wang has been The Taipei Music Academy and Festival; Muckey has been removed from the Oregon Bach Festival.
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BREAKING: Juilliard will now prohibit all "amorous or sexual relationships" between "faculty and students," not just undergrads and "faculty and [grad] students where a power imbalance might be exploited."
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61
The official account of the musicians of the
@nyphil
,
@NYPMusicians
, posted this statement on Instagram:
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10
58
For
@irworkshop
and then
@vanmusicmag
, I spent six months investigating Juilliard’s composition department. I found numerous former students from the 1990s to 2010s who shared allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct against three (two current, one recent) faculty.
"There are still people teaching there that have this tainted history. We need to tell the truth about what happened."
Former Juilliard composition students share allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct.
@Sammy_Sussman
@vanmusicmag
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BREAKING: NYPost is reporting that Matthew Muckey and Liang Wang have sued
@nyphil
and
@Local_802_AFM
in federal court.
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Last tweet of the day: I’m glad to see some conversations emerging in the new music community about other, as-yet-unreported stories. If anyone wants to talk, I can be reached at sammybsussman2
@gmail
.com — I’m always happy to speak with folks even if that has to be off-the-record
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(To be clear, I was not one of these reporters. I’ve reached out to the Philharmonic for comment and I’m waiting to hear back.)
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This little paperweight was such an amazing surprise! I’m still so honored that my name appeared at the very, very bottom of two
@washingtonpost
Jan 6 articles that are now on the Pulitzer website. Thank you to
@JohnSullivanAU
and my
@irworkshop
internship for making this happen.
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@carterledyard
@McLaughlinStern
I've heard that some
@NYPMusicians
are upset at how their management handled this article. I first contacted
@nyphil
spokesperson Adam Crane in October. He provided a few statements on Oct. 27, 2023. He made clear then that
@nyphil
would not comment further on this specific case.
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28
NEW: 1,925 people have signed
@StJohnLara
's petition for
@nyphil
to release Cara Kizer from her alleged NDA.
91 composers, musicians, critics, etc. just released this letter calling on
@nyphil
to release Kizer and all members from potential NDAs.
NEW: Advocates like
@StJohnLara
are circulating a petition calling on
@nyphil
to release Cara Kizer from her alleged NDA.
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Less than 24 hours before potential publication, I began receiving communications from Wang's attorney, Alan S. Lewis of
@carterledyard
and Muckey's attorney, Steven J. Hyman of
@McLaughlinStern
. I'm glad that both men's perspectives were included in the article.
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I’m excited to announce that a
@MuckRock
reporting project on police disciplinary files I’m working on with
@annigrosser
and
@SanjanaBhambhan
has been awarded a
@MedillSchool
@GoogleNewsInit
Data-Driven Reporting Project grant!
Spring 2024 Awardees — The Data-Driven Reporting Project
datadrivenreporting.medill.northwestern.edu
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NEW: Another group of musicians has put out a petition calling on
@nyphil
to release both Cara Kizer from her alleged NDA and all other former and current employees that might have their own NDAs with the orchestra.
And
@nyphil
? A high-powered group of musicians has put out ANOTHER petition urging you to lift the NDAs. Everyone: sign and let the orchestra know how you feel about this.
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NEW: Numerous composers and other folks in the new music industry have signed “An Open Letter to The Juilliard Administration Regarding the Alleged Misconduct of Robert Beaser”
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NEW in reporting from
@michael_brodeur
(
@washingtonpost
):
- Beaser on leave during outside investigation
- Juilliard acknowledging two previous internal investigations
- Numerous prominent composers have signed a petition about this
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Interesting to see this law firm (
@lblg100
)’s advertisement:
“Today, New York Magazine publishes … an accusation from Cara Kizer, a French-horn player, that she was drugged and sexually assaulted. When accused of sexual assault… Executive Defenders becomes your shield.”
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10
26
New, from me,
@annigrosser
&
@SanjanaBhambhan
, for
@MuckRock
and
@nysfocus
:
(This the first in a series of articles based on tens of thousands of pages of police disciplinary files we’ve obtained):
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For those who want to reach the new investigators retained by
@nyphil
:
Individuals can contact the investigators by reaching out to: hr
@nyphil
.org, tlevy
@levyemploymentlaw
.com or 914-338-8023.
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FURTHER UPDATE with official statement:
#BREAKING
: Through a spokesperson,
@nyphil
released the following statement: "For the time being, Matthew Muckey and Liang Wang will not be at rehearsals or performances."
This comment was shared with
@NYPMusicians
on Sat, 1 day after the
@vulture
/
@NYMag
article was published.
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So grateful, Anne, for your continued efforts to share these stories and improve the industry!
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This after Dec.
@vanmusicmag
/
@irworkshop
reporting found allegations of sexual misconduct against Beaser that were reported to the school in 2018.
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NPR: Former music students accuse two Juilliard teachers of sexual misconduct
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@ShannonStocking
I'm also seeing a surprising amount of availability on
@UMichPrezOno
's scheduler's Google Calendar...
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Though Juilliard's investigation did not find "that [Corigliano] or the school had either a formal or informal policy" preventing woman from studying with him, eight former students said in interviews that this was the case. (See below for further corroboration.)
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The email today says that "The investigation also received concerning allegations against ... Christopher Rouse of unwanted sexual advances and comments. The allegations were considered credible, but could not be fully investigated; Mr. Rouse died in 2019."
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Lots of these costs are public (tax filings, board minutes, etc) The outside investigator cost
@nyphil
$300K; the arbitrator cost
@nyphil
$60K &
@Local_802_AFM
$60K. Wang & Muckey received $700K and $400K, respectively, in back pay.
(Kizer’s alleged 2012 NDA: 6 figures.)
Rapists are expensive: in the wake of
@Sammy_Sussman
's article about rape by
@nyphil
musicians, Zeneba Bowers adds up the numbers to determine that this incident has cost the Philharmonic around $3 million. And orchestras are struggling for money. Ha.
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NEW: A
@nyphil
offers contact information for the investigation into "allegations of sexual harassment or otherwise inappropriate conduct by musicians or other current employees of the Philharmonic."
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NEW: Former
@nyphil
trombonist Amanda Stewart spoke about Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion in Music following last month's
@vulture
/
@NYMag
article at the 2024
@inttrbfestival
.
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NEW: Musicians of the
@CincySymphony
.
👏👏👏 Thank you to the
@CincySymphony
musicians for their teal ribbons on stage tonight in support of victims of sexual assault and discrimination.
#supportforcara
@Sammy_Sussman
And a gorgeous concert too. 🎶🩵
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New: from current
@columbiajourn
students
@uzmaafrn
, Angelica Ang, Fahima Degia,
@ArshiiQureshi
,
@IndyScholtens
and me.
Narratives and photos from inside and outside Columbia's campus Tuesday night.
Dispatches from Columbia — The mayor and the police blamed “outside agitators” for campus protests when they descended on colleges on Tuesday.
The following narratives and photos from students and one recent graduate of Columbia capture what they saw.
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@seattlesymphony
@chicagosymphony
@PhoenixSymphony
@WpgSymphony
@slso
@SFSymphony
@sfs_musicians
NEW: Post by the musicians of the
@slso
. (Amanda Stewart is a member — she and Cara Kizer are in the center of the third image).
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Thank you to
@vanmusicmag
for publishing this reporting (and thank you to
@irworkshop
for supporting it during my summer internship!)
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Shoutout to
@hwfmorris
for this. (I’m sure the italic notes at the top are only some indication of the thought that must’ve gone into this!)
In VAN this week:
Dame Sarah Connolly previously described the Saudi regime as “murdering autocrats stuck in a time warp.”
So why is she starring in their new flagship opera?
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There’s more in the article than this thread so please read the full piece for additional details and powerful quotes like this:
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@classicalbeat
Actually, it seems that Liang Wang’s name is being scrubbed much more effectively than Matthew Muckey’s. Try Googling his name and then searching his name on Bing or DuckDuckGo — seems like this is happening every 24 hours (so you might still see the NY Times article right now!)
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Individuals can contact the investigators by reaching out to: hr
@nyphil
.org, tlevy
@levyemploymentlaw
.com or 914-338-8023.
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Excerpt from an email from
@columbiajourn
dean Jelani Cobb to the current J-school class: "We believe that journalists have a fundamental right to cover the news. Your efforts turned those sentiments into reality."
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Juilliard has already said that it will hire an outside law firm to conduct an “independent investigation” based on the information we provided in a pre-publication email:
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NEW from me for
@vanmusicmag
(with slightly more information from Robert Beaser's legal/press team):
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If you want to see more reporting like this last article, please consider subscribing to
@vanmusicmag
() or supporting
@irworkshop
(). Small newsrooms make this reporting possible (especially for freelancers like me.)
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NEW: full email from Juilliard’s provost to the composition faculty
@vanmusicmag
@washingtonpost
Here’s the full contents of the email from Juilliard’s provost to composition faculty.
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Nice to hear
@StJohnLara
on
@CommotionCBC
talking about safety in music schools and orchestras (including a reference to former
@umichsmtd
professor Stephen Shipps):
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Allegations of sexual misconduct against a former Juilliard faculty member from a student who was auditioning at the time:
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NEW: Interesting analysis from "The AFM Observer" on Muckey and Wang's lawsuits.
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This faculty member denied that allegation. So we used spreadsheets, online archives (Juilliard would not make their full archives accessible to use), web scrapers and lots and lots of Googling to show that 1/29 of his ’97-‘21 students were female (vs. 31/190 in the larger dept.)
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I’m so glad to see some faculty sharing their opinion about this. The faculty/staff side of the University can feel like a monolith for students — I was constantly shocked in my reporting to find specific faculty members that are incredibly supportive (behind closed doors.)
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Allegations from multiple students of sexual misconduct against a current faculty member and former department chair, along with evidence that some of these allegations were reported to Juilliard in 2018:
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@tigerbeat
@AP_Images
@JonathanBlitzer
@NewYorker
Thanks for this (and apologies to Andrew for only tagging AP last night!)
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Interesting response from Harbaugh:
In '20,
@ethan_sears
& I reported sexual misconduct allegations against a
@UMichFootball
player. In that piece, we reported on
@brendatracy24
's visit and the team declining to sign her "Set the Expectation" pledge.
Jim Harbaugh says he doesn’t want to speak on Mel Tucker’s suspension but notes Brenda Tracy has spoken to Michigan’s team in the past and he supports her work.
Harbaugh: “I know Brenda Tracy, respect her a lot.”
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NEW investigation from
@michigandaily
's
#FocalPoint
investigative team:
"Multiple sexual misconduct allegations against a Middle East Studies professor arose in the 2000s. 15 years later, the department still feels the effects."
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Update: This was true when posted, as you can see from the screenshots. It is not still true!
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NEW: Advocates like
@StJohnLara
are circulating a petition calling on
@nyphil
to release Cara Kizer from her alleged NDA.
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Women who knew of these allegations in the late 1990s – mid-2010s say that they continue to have an effect on new music:
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@CincySymphony
@OSOmusicians
NEW:
@CincySymphony
is seemingly the first orchestra (not musicians’ group specific to an orchestra) to make a public statement like this.
Following the New York Magazine article on Cara Kizer & Amanda Stewart, the musicians and administration of the CSO chose to wear teal ribbons in support of survivors of sexual assault.
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NEW: One interesting file from my (and
@annigrosser
and
@SanjanaBhambhan
)’s long-term “Behind the Badge” police misconduct investigation: Eric Adams’ 2006 discipline for making improper public statements seemingly as an NYPD officer.
Then-Captain Adams lost 15 vacation days.
One NYPD Official Who Has Been Disciplined For Making Dubious Public Statements: Eric Adams
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Congrats to
@JCholakovska
,
@the_nazmul
and everyone else at
@irworkshop
for winning award after award for their
@pubhealthwatch
reporting "Toxic Texas Air."
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5
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2 years ago,
@ninammolina
and I reported
@UMich
and
@TheOfficialACM
’s separate investigations into allegations against Walter Lasecki. We found wide discrepancies in the investigations/outcomes. This new reporting by
@michigandaily
is really interesting:
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@CincySymphony
NEW: More from
@OSOmusicians
.
During our concerts this weekend, we wore teal ribbons as a gesture of support toward Cara Kizer and all survivors of sexual assault. There is a lot of work still to be done, and we are committed to making our workplace a safe and supportive place for all.
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Allegations that a different current faculty member almost never allowed female students into his studio:
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@seattlesymphony
@chicagosymphony
@PhoenixSymphony
@WpgSymphony
@slso
NEW: Post by the musicians of the
@SFSymphony
(
@sfs_musicians
):
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6
Students who were handcuffed on
@Columbia
campus being led into white NYPD buses with tinted windows.
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@seattlesymphony
@chicagosymphony
@PhoenixSymphony
@WpgSymphony
@slso
@SFSymphony
@sfs_musicians
NEW: Post from musicians of the
@ncsymphony
:
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1
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@lizabdnour
@michigandaily
Seems worth adding that when they finally did check the email, it was weeks after
@julian_wray
’s article raising significant questions about their first investigation.
It was the article, of course, that suddenly led to the professor being put on leave.
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I'm excited to share that I received a grant from the Fund for Investigative Journalism for some reporting about New York State police disciplinary files!
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This is really interesting (
@michigandaily
reporting suggests this might have some effects at
@UMich
):
A bill limiting the use of NDAs to silence victims of workplace sexual harassment and assault appears poised to become law in the U.S.
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1
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"This figure does not include ... hospitalized individuals released by ICE immediately prior to
dying from COVID-19."
Glad to see
@g_vitaglione
and my 2021 reporting for
@irworkshop
included in a few lawsuits filed by the ACLU against ICE.
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1
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