Hate groups have long called Kentucky home. But where does the state stand in comparison to the rest of the country? In this series, reporter Eleanor Klibanoff examines hate groups across the region, goes inside the playbook of one burgeoning supremacist group, and looks at how some residents are pushing back.

Records and interviews show that Louisville police help federal immigration agents with enforcement when asked, a practice that runs counter to statements from city leaders and in contrast to the “compassionate city” image they project. Louisville Metro Police dispatchers took ICE’s call for assistance, on average, nearly once a week from January to June, call records show. ICE agents asked LMPD to serve local warrants, make traffic stops and knock on the doors of non-violent offenders wanted for immigration offenses.

Her troubles continued even after her alleged rapist was indicted. Death threats. Vandalism. A suspicious car fire. The local sheriff -- a friend of defendant Billy Joe Miles -- got involved. But whose interests was he serving?

Kentucky’s constables are gods unto themselves, armed with badges and guns but almost always with little or no formal training. And their actions have grave consequences.

KyCIR uncovered state university boards stacked with Democrats, in clear violation of the law. Many of Gov. Steve Beshear's board appointees were also donors to his campaigns.

A KyCIR investigation raises questions about political maneuvering for a power plant in eastern Kentucky and whether leaders sacrificed the public good to benefit a few.

KyCIR reveals how the university’s nonprofit fundraising arm took a 99 percent ownership stake of a vacant factory in Oklahoma. The move appears to have no academic purpose and raises ethical red flags, experts said.

Trouble Behind Bars is a months-long investigation into Kentucky jail deaths. We found preventable deaths that provoked little to no follow-up, as well as failures at all levels of government. Who is dying in your local county jail? Not even the state Department of Corrections has a true, accurate and updated accounting.

We found Kentucky has a patchwork of ethics policies, many legalizing nepotism, many with rules so infused with loopholes that public officials readily bring their relatives aboard.

Since 2008, Jefferson County Judge Katie King has loaned or given her campaigns more than $550,000, according to KREF’s online database. It’s a pattern she’s followed in three successive elections cycles -- and a maneuver for which she was once scolded and fined by state campaign finance officials.