Meghan Hurley, Ottawa Citizen

Original nomination: 

Meghan Hurley, Ottawa Citizen

Original nomination: 

Meghan Hurley was instrumental in breaking one of the most courageous pieces of reporting I've seen in some time. The culminating story is here: http://www.theinquiry.ca/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/LeClair-The-priest-his-gambling-and-trouble-at-Blessed-Sacrament.pdf

In 2011, Father Joe Leclair was an immensely popular priest at one of Ottawa's largest parishes. In tandem with Ottawa Citizen senior writer* Andrew Duffy, Hurley received some anonymous information that indicated Leclair was using the parish's funds to gamble. She was able to ascertain that this was the case by following Leclair to the Hull casino and witnessed him gambling. Accounting ireegularities were later uncovered. For their stalwart reporting efforts, Hurley and Duffy were insulted by numerous parish members, admonished and the Citizen itself lost scores of subscribers. However, the Citizen and the Hurley/Duffy team have been exonnerated with the laying of criminal charges against Father Joe. The pressure to bury this story must have been immense.

Links: 

The priest, his gambling and trouble at Blessed Sacrament

Correction: The original nomination for Hurley referred to Andrew Duffy as the Citizen's court reporter and has been modified to accurately reflect Duffy's role.