MARTHA MENDOZA

Associated Press Writer

Mendoza reports on justice, accountability and transparency for The Associated Press. She is a member of AP’s investigative team.

Lara Trump is taking the reins and reshaping the RNC in her father-in-law’s image

Lara Trump became co-chair of the Republican National Committee in March, culminating efforts by her father-in-law, former President Donald Trump, and his allies to shake up the party’s governing body.

Trading Trump: Truth Social’s first month of trading has sent investors on a ride

With Donald Trump facing dozens of federal criminal charges and hundreds of millions in legal expenses, Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. went public on the Nasdaq exchange March 26.

Highlights from the AP’s reporting on the shrimp industry in India

India is the top supplier of shrimp to the U.S., with Indian shrimp stocked in freezers at most of the nation’s biggest grocery store and restaurant chains.

AP finds grueling conditions in Indian shrimp industry that report calls ‘dangerous and abusive’

India is the top supplier of shrimp to the U.S., with Indian shrimp stocked in freezers at most of the nation’s biggest grocery store and restaurant chains.

U.S.-funded infrastructure in Gaza largely unscathed as death toll soars

The United States has spent more than $7 billion on humanitarian aid and building infrastructure in the Palestinian territories in recent decades, while sending more than $3 billion a year to Israel for its military.

Secret records: Government says Marine’s adoption of Afghan orphan seen as abduction, must be undone

The U.S. government has warned a Virginia judge that an American Marine’s adoption of an Afghan war orphan was flawed and could be seen as international child abduction.

Advocates sue federal government for failing to ban imports of cocoa harvested by children

Child welfare advocates have filed a federal lawsuit asking a judge to force the Biden administration to block imports of cocoa harvested by children in West Africa that ends up in America’s most popular chocolate desserts and candies.

Putin profits off US and European reliance on Russian nuclear fuel

The U.S. and its European allies are importing vast amounts of nuclear compounds and products from Russia, giving Moscow hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue as it wages war on Ukraine.

A baby was found in the rubble of a US raid in Afghanistan. But who exactly was killed and why?

A baby found in the rubble of a U.S. raid in Afghanistan was adopted by a Marine. Once-secret documents and AP reporting in the village reveal details that thrust this raid into an ongoing controversy over who the military killed.

US Marine’s adoption of Afghan war orphan voided

In a highly unusual ruling, a state court judge has voided a U.S. Marine’s adoption of an Afghan war orphan, more than a year after he took the little girl away from the Afghan couple raising her.

Spring brings more wind, rain and snow to soaked California

A strong late-season Pacific storm is bringing wind, rain and snow to saturated California as the first full day of spring shows little change from an extraordinary winter.

Atmospheric river floods California towns, brings rain, snow

More than 9,000 California residents were under evacuation orders Friday after a new atmospheric river brought heavy rain, thunderstorms and strong winds, swelling rivers and creeks and flooding several major highways.

Storm-weary Californians clean up, brace for another torrent

Storm-ravaged California is scrambling to clean up and repair widespread damage. A new storm gaining strength Wednesday is expected to be limited to the north while the south gets a break.

California gets brief lull after damaging ‘bomb cyclone’

California weather has calmed but the lull is expected to be brief. More Pacific storms are lined up to blast into the state, where successive powerful weather systems have knocked out power to thousands, battered the coastline, flooded streets, toppled trees and caused at least six deaths.

‘Bomb cyclone’ brings damaging winds, drenches California

Damaging winds and heavy rains in California have knocked out power to tens of thousands, caused flash flooding and contributed to the deaths of at least two people.

Afghan war orphan remains with Marine accused of abduction

The Afghan woman ran down the street towards her friend’s apartment as soon as she heard the news: the White House had publicly weighed in on her family’s case.

CDC to conduct health study at polluted former Army base

Federal health officials are conducting a new study to determine whether veterans once stationed at a now-shuttered California military base were exposed to dangerously high levels of cancer-causing toxins.

Afghan couple accuse US Marine of abducting their baby

The young Afghan couple raced to the airport in Kabul, clutching their baby girl close amid the chaotic withdrawal of American troops last year.

Six months into war, Russian goods still flowing to US

BALTIMORE (AP) — On a hot, humid East Coast day this summer, a massive container ship pulled into the Port of Baltimore loaded with sheets of plywood, aluminum rods and radioactive material – all sourced from the fields, forests and factories of Russia.

Mega dance company bred culture of sex, silence, dancers say

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Every year, one of the world’s leading dance competition companies sells the dream of Hollywood fame to hundreds of thousands of ambitious young dancers hoping to launch careers on television, in movies and on stage.

How AI-powered tech landed man in jail with scant evidence

Michael Williams, a 65-year-old grandfather from Chicago, sat behind bars for nearly a year accused of murder.

How AI-powered tech landed man in jail with scant evidence

CHICAGO (AP) — Michael Williams’ wife pleaded with him to remember their fishing trips with the grandchildren, how he used to braid her hair, anything to jar him back to his world outside the concrete walls of Cook County Jail.

California reps ask US for new water study at former base

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — Two California congressmembers are asking the federal government to study whether there’s evidence that potential toxic and contaminated drinking water at Fort Ord can be tied to specific cancers and other diseases.

What Lies Beneath: Vets worry polluted base made them ill

FORT ORD NATIONAL MONUMENT, Calif. (AP) — For nearly 80 years, recruits reporting to central California’s Fort Ord considered themselves the lucky ones, privileged to live and work amid sparkling seas, sandy dunes and sage-covered hills.

Senators question DOJ funding for AI-powered policing tech

CHICAGO (AP) — A Democratic senator said the U.S. Justice Department needs to look into whether the algorithm-powered police technologies it funds contribute to racial bias in law enforcement and lead to wrongful arrests.

4 Takeaways: AP investigates gunshot detection technology

Look up at street lights and rooftops in some of America’s poorest neighborhoods today and you might spot what looks like a small box or dish.

Authorities ID 8 victims of California railyard shooting

Authorities have identified eight people killed by a gunman at a California railyard on Wednesday before the gunman took his own life.

Migrant children held in mass shelters with little oversight

The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities that The Associated Press has learned spans two dozen states and includes five shelters with more than 1,000 children packed inside.

Migrant children held in mass shelters with little oversight

The Biden administration is holding tens of thousands of asylum-seeking children in an opaque network of some 200 facilities.

Resilient redwood forest a beacon of hope for California

BIG BASIN REDWOODS STATE PARK, Calif. (AP) — Eight months after a lightning siege ignited more than 650 wildfires in Northern California, the state’s oldest park — which was almost entirely ablaze — is doing what nature does best: recovering.