Typically, MuckRock tries to follow the old maxim, “Report the story, don’t be the story,” but today I wanted to share some good news: The Freedom of the Press Foundation has graciously chosen us as one of four organizations to receive funding through its inaugural crowdfunding campaign.

During the Occupy LA protests last year at City Hall Park, activists expressed anger at the nation’s increasing economic inequality and the financial policies that led to the Great Recession. While Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa publicly credited the protesters with helping to “awaken the nation’s conscience,” records from inside City Hall reveal that the administration was preoccupied by the protest’s costs to the city.

The sheriff in Mesa County, CO is one of the few law enforcement agencies in the country authorized to use drones in the field, documents from the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) indicate.

As mayor of Boston, Kevin White oversaw what many have called its transformation into a world-class city. During his four terms in office, from 1968 through 1984, he oversaw revived development in the city’s downtown and led the way through a bitter struggle with school integration. White’s tenure was also marked by corruption allegations. But even as many of his associates were convicted on corruption charges, several FBI investigations into White’s activities as mayor came up dry.

Which article in the November 1985 issue of Cosmo so infuriated one reader from Phoenix, Ariz., that they mailed editor-in-chief Helen Gurley Brown a death threat with a razor blade taped to the letter? Was it “An Intimate Look at Adultery?” “Twelve Hideaways for Lovers?” Or could it have been the pro-pagan “Astro Forecast for Your Man?”

Like many agencies, the San Diego County Sheriff’s office responded that they had no documents relating to drones. But in this case, MuckRock discovered there were responsive documents — which were only released by a different city.

Documents released to MuckRock illuminate lessons the Defense Department took from its response to Hurricane Andrew in August 1992, which destroyed thousands of homes across Florida and Louisiana and left thousands without power.

The National Security Agency operates with more secrecy and freedom than perhaps any other U.S. government entity. As 15 pages of recently released talking points show, even its own statements defending its activities are sometimes considered too sensitive for the public to see.

The FBI file on avant-garde book publisher Barney Rosset reveals how J. Edgar Hoover’s Bureau played decency crusader on two continents in an attempt to keep Lady Chatterley’s Lover out of the hands of the public.

The Boston jail that faced intense scrutiny after the accused "Craigslist Killer" committed suicide while in custody mixed in clip art and celebrity gossip in a slideshow used for suicide prevention training.

Protestors opposed to the Alameda County Sheriff’s plan to obtain unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) held a press conference at Oakland City Hall on Thursday, Oct. 18 in coordination with the ACLU of Northern California and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. MuckRock had previously obtained documents related to Alameda’s proposed drone program.

The Seattle Police Department plans to expand its drone program over the next year with the purchase of two additional units and the training of additional officers, documents released to MuckRock indicate. The additional drones would cost SPD at least $150,000. But beyond conducting limited training exercises, SPD has never deployed the two drones it purchased in 2010 for $82,000. Furthermore, SPD has no clear policy outlining how drones can be deployed in the field.

The career of Hunter S. Thompson, chronicler of America’s counterculture movement, was closely followed by the FBI - even going so far as to interview his neighborhood liquor store clerk.

In a September 2011 memo released to MuckRock, Boston Police Department Commissioner Edward Davis outlines how BPD and its officers are authorized to use automated license plate recognition (ALPR) technology and data. In particular, the memo reveals BPD’s capacity to retain ALPR data indefinitely for investigatory purposes.

The hip-hop duo Insane Clown Posse sued the FBI this week after the agency failed to fulfill a 2011 FOIA request for documents justifying the Bureau’s designation of the Detroit-based musical group’s fans as a gang.

In July, the MBTA hiked fares for “The Ride” 100 percent and enacted service changes some say are aimed at reducing ridership. With disability advocates questioning the agency’s motives, very little information was available about how the decisions were made.

The Miami-Dade Police Department’s three-year drone program has been a high-profile example of municipal law enforcement agencies’ swift embrace of drone technology.

For nearly seven decades, General Vang Pao served as a warrior for his people in a campaign that spanned from his native Laos to California. Between World War II and the Global War on Terror, Vang went from decorated veteran and CIA confidante to defending himself in a federal courtroom against charges of attempting to funnel almost $10 million of weapons to Laos.

Over a span of almost nine months, the Austin, TX police department pursued plans to lease an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), only to kill the program suddenly. Revealed in documents obtained as part of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and MuckRock’s Drone Census, we get an agency-eye view of the process required to go from conception to (almost) kickstarting a UAV program.

Huge events like the Republican National Convention are designated by the Department of Defense as “National Special Security Events” - rare non-disaster situations where U.S. military personnel can be deployed domestically.

After the high-profile "Craigslist Killer" Suicide, MuckRock co-founder Michael Morisy requested the Sheriff’s Department guidelines on suicide prevention. For two years, the Sheriff’s Department has failed to provide them.

There are no fines (or any punishment at all) for a Massachusetts agency that doesn’t respond to a Freedom of Information request.

Dale Earnhardt Sr. is remembered as one of NASCAR’s most successful drivers and tragic figures, given the shocking Daytona 500 crash that killed him in 2001. But followers of the sport had elevated him to mythic status long before the fatal accident. An FBI file obtained by MuckRock user Jason Smathers documents how Earnhardt faced danger on and off the track.

The Allston-Brighton toll at Interchange 19 of the Massachusetts Turnpike only costs $1.25 (or $1 with an EZ Pass/FastLane), but some companies are hoping that drivers will be so grateful to be relieved of the hurried, last-minute search for quarters between the car seat and door that they’ll spend upwards of $70 on their next pair of heels or concert tickets.

A San Francisco Police Department project proposal suggested that the department's Homeland Security Unit acquire a remotely piloted vehicle (RPV) equipped with video and infrared sensing capabilities.

As citizens of a democracy, we’d like to believe that our tax money is spent on programs and products that will support the nation, and create a better, stronger society. So what do we do when we discover that more than $33 million dollars was spent on a web application few find useful?