Military
Accountability for the Armed Forces
How the VA Fails Veterans on Mental Health
A ProPublica analysis of 313 studies conducted by the agency’s inspector general in recent years shows repeated failures in behavioral care. The breakdowns have had fatal consequences.
Three Days of Tragedy: How a VA Clinic’s Inability to Help Veterans in Crisis Destroyed Two Families
Two veterans sought psychiatric care at a VA clinic in Chico, California. They were bounced between virtual providers and struggled to get support in the threadbare system. A staffer worried, “We are going to kill someone.” Then tragedy struck.
Animating the “Infinite Nightmare” of Night Raids in Afghanistan
The Night Doctrine, an animated documentary, follows ProPublica reporting on squads of deadly commandos who killed hundreds of Afghan civilians. Here, the film’s animator and co-director, Mauricio Rodríguez Pons, discusses bringing the story to life.
The Night Doctrine: ProPublica’s First Animated Documentary Traces Reporting on Afghanistan’s Zero Units
In 2022, reporter Lynzy Billing wrote a powerful investigation into squads of deadly commandos who had killed hundreds of Afghan civilians. “The Night Doctrine” is a short, animated documentary following her reporting.
Featured Reporters
Impact of Our Reporting
Veterans Affairs Secretary Vows to Increase Staffing at Clinic Tied to Two Deadly Shootings
The Northern California clinic was the focus of a recent ProPublica investigation into inadequate mental health care. Over the course of three days, two veterans who’d been unable to get consistent treatment at the facility fatally shot their mothers.
New Pentagon Rules Keep Many Military Court Records Secret
Despite a 2016 law requiring transparency, the Defense Department is limiting public access to court records in the military justice system. A recent ProPublica lawsuit appears to have spurred the new Pentagon guidance.
Judge Finds Sailor Not Guilty in Fire That Destroyed $1.2 Billion Navy Ship
Even though a separate Navy review found that 34 people, including five admirals, contributed to or directly led to the loss of the USS Bonhomme Richard, Ryan Mays is the only person to have faced a court-martial.
Series
Series: Veterans Without Assistance : Investigating Mental Health Care in the VA System
Series: Disaster in the Pacific : Death and Neglect in the 7th Fleet
Series: Bombs in Our Backyard : Investigating One of America’s Greatest Polluters
Series: G.I. Dough : Tracking Military Waste
Series: Failing the Fallen : Recovering Our Vets
Series: Lost to History : When War Records Go Missing
Series: Brain Wars : How the Military Is Failing Its Wounded
