Brendan Keefe

Atlanta

Chief Investigative Reporter at WANF-TV (Atlanta, GA)

Chief Investigator @ATLNewsfirst. National Investigator @InvestigateTV. Peabody, duPont Awards. 140 Emmys, 9 National Murrows. Kenyon alum [email protected]

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Articles

The Top Local TV Investigations in 2024 as Judged by Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE)

2 weeks ago | newsblues.com | Paul Greeley |Brendan Keefe |Lindsey Basye |Bailey Williams

By Paul Greeley817-578-6324, [email protected] Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE), a grassroots nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of investigative reporting, announced the winners and finalists in the 2024 IRE Awards. The annual contest showcases exemplary work by members of Investigative Reporters and Editors from the past year. Awards will be presented at the 2025 IRE Conference in New Orleans on Saturday, June 21.
‘How about making sure you’re on the right street?’: US Supreme Court hears arguments in case of Atlanta wrong-house raid

1 month ago | walb.com | Brendan Keefe

WASHINGTON, DC (Atlanta News First) - Justices from both sides of the ideological split on the high court had tough questions for government lawyers defending the wrong-house raid of a West Atlanta family. Trina Martin and her boyfriend, Toi Cliatt, were sleeping in the middle of the night in 2017 when an FBI SWAT team knocked down their front door and stormed into their home. Martin’s son, Gabe, said he woke up in his bedroom to see an M-4 rifle in his face. Agents had the wrong house.
WATCH: Free speech limited in metro Atlanta suburb of Sandy Springs

2 months ago | appenmedia.com | Brendan Keefe

The Sandy Springs City Council recently passed three new ordinances limiting First Amendment activity, the most controversial of which creates an eight-foot buffer zone between someone wanting to share a message and anyone who doesn’t want to hear it. Atlanta News First reports the story.
‘Cost me my childhood’: FBI raid of wrong home heads to US Supreme Court

2 months ago | fox5vegas.com | Brendan Keefe

ATLANTA, Ga. (InvestigateTV) - Seven-year-old Gabe Watson was startled awake by the sound of a flash-bang grenade exploding just outside his bedroom door. “One second, I’m asleep; next thing I know, I have a gun pointed in my face,” Watson, now 14, said. The October 2017 FBI raid of the home in west Atlanta is now headed to the U.S. Supreme Court. Justices agreed to hear the case to settle discrepancies in the way courts interpret the Federal Tort Claims Act.
Discover how a bill almost changed public access to police records

2 months ago | wctv.tv | Brendan Keefe |Tim Darnell

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - The powerful state House rules committee stripped an attempt by lawmakers that would have radically restricted the public’s right to know about crimes in their neighborhood. Originally, Senate Bill 12 would just have clarified the definitions of those who are in charge of overseeing public records.
Lawmakers make late push to weaken public’s access to police records

2 months ago | wtoc.com | Brendan Keefe |Tim Darnell

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - An 11th-hour measure proposed in the Georgia General Assembly could radically restrict the public’s right to know about crimes in their neighborhood. The move comes in the final hours of the 2025 legislative session, which is set to adjourn by midnight on Friday, April 4. Originally, Senate Bill 12 would just have clarified the definitions of those who are in charge of overseeing public records.
Ga. lawmakers make late push to weaken access to police records

2 months ago | wrdw.com | Brendan Keefe |Tim Darnell

ATLANTA, Ga. - An 11th-hour measure proposed in the Georgia General Assembly could radically restrict the public’s right to know about crimes in their neighborhood. The move comes in the final hours of the 2025 legislative session, which is set to adjourn by midnight on Friday, April 4. Originally, Senate Bill 12 would just have clarified the definitions of those who are in charge of overseeing public records.
Blind Justice: People with disabilities mistaken for non-compliant suspects

2 months ago | fox5vegas.com | Brendan Keefe

LAKE CITY, Fla. (InvestigateTV) - James Hodges was walking home from jury duty when he was stopped by sheriff’s deputies. “It looks like you’re carrying a gun in your back pocket,” the Columbia County deputy told him, according to body-worn camera recording of the 2022 incident in Lake City, Florida.
Counterfeit Cars, Stolen Dreams: VIN swapping allows car thieves to sell, trade your vehicle

Feb 17, 2025 | kptv.com | Brendan Keefe

ATLANTA, Ga. (InvestigateTV) - Chidimma Okoro had no idea she was driving someone else’s 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee. She bought the vehicle from Honda South in Morrow, Georgia. The dealership had sold her a stolen car, according to an investigation by the Georgia Department of Revenue. A special agent with the state agency knocked on Okoro’s door just before New Year’s, demanding to inspect the SUV in her garage. South Fulton Police Department officers accompanied Special Agent C.M. O’Brien as backup.
Counterfeit Cars, Stolen Dreams: VIN swapping allows car thieves to sell, trade your vehicle

Feb 17, 2025 | fox5vegas.com | Brendan Keefe

ATLANTA, Ga. (InvestigateTV) - Chidimma Okoro had no idea she was driving someone else’s 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee. She bought the vehicle from Honda South in Morrow, Georgia. The dealership had sold her a stolen car, according to an investigation by the Georgia Department of Revenue. A special agent with the state agency knocked on Okoro’s door just before New Year’s, demanding to inspect the SUV in her garage. South Fulton Police Department officers accompanied Special Agent C.M. O’Brien as backup.