Elizabethe Holland was awarded a prestigious Gerald Loeb Award in 2010 for her teamwork on a series of articles exposing the shady transactions of auto-warranty firm US Fidelis. But that's not why Holland caught our attention this past year. More impressive was Holland's dogged coverage of the shenanigans within the Northeast Ambulance and Fire Protection District. Holland's reporting revealed how the fire district's attorney, Elbert Walton Jr., billed the agency outrageous fees of hundreds of thousands of dollars while his cronies on the board awarded themselves with lucrative perks and payouts. Holland's articles eventually led to a state audit; auditor Susan Montee called the fire district a "poster child" of bad government, and a judge froze the board's checking account.
Jennifer Mann
| Sep 25, 2014
Paul Hampel
| Sep 26, 2013
Diane Toroian Keaggy
| Sep 27, 2012
Blythe Bernhard and Jeremy Kohler
| Sep 22, 2011
Joe Mahr
| Sep 30, 2009
Carolyn P. Smith
| Sep 24, 2008
Susannah Cahalan
| Sep 26, 2007
Jake Wagman
| Sep 27, 2006
Jill Moon
| Sep 29, 2005
Mike Fitzgerald
Belleville News-Democrat
| Sep 24, 2003
Mike Fitzgerald
Belleville News-Democrat
| Sep 24, 2003