Impact 1,200 GRAVES ARE MISSING IN TAMPA. HOW DID THEY DISAPPEAR? Reporter Paul Guzzo likes to say that he has only one more cemetery story left. But after more than two years, he hasn’t stopped searching for the truth. His latest expose provided an account of what had happened at Tampa’s Italian Club Cemetery, where the graves of Black and Cuban residents were most likely covered over and forgotten.
THE NEW RECRUITS In 2020, the Times covered many protests inspired by the calls for racial justice. We heard from people who were angry and frustrated by the actions of police officers across the country, including, of course, former Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin, later convicted of George Floyd’s murder. Calls to defund police gained steam. Rank-and-file officers and chiefs alike decided this was no longer a job they could bear. So we asked ourselves: Who would want to be a police officer these days? And that led us to the St. Petersburg Police Academy. Times reporter Lane DeGregory and photographer John Pendygraft wanted to understand the kind of training recruits go through, the lessons they learn, and we wanted to see why someone would put themselves through this. Even in the best of circumstances, being a cop comes with risks and responsibilities that are sometimes life-and-death choices. 6
2021 TA M PA B AY T I M E S I M PA C T R E P O RT
