Author

Isiah Holmes is a journalist and videographer, and a lifelong resident of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Holmes' video work dates back to his high school days at Wauwatosa East High, when he made a documentary about the local police department. Since then, his writing has been featured in Urban Milwaukee, Isthmus, Milwaukee Stories, Milwaukee Neighborhood News Services, Pontiac Tribune, the Progressive Magazine, Al Jazeera, and other outlets. He was also featured in the 2018 documentary The Chase Key, and was the recipient of the Sierra Club Great Waters Group 2021 Environmental Hero of the Year award. The Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council also awarded Holmes its 2021-2022 Media Openness Award for using the open records laws for investigative journalism. Holmes was also a finalist in the 2021 Milwaukee Press Club Excellence in Journalism Awards alongside the rest of the Wisconsin Examiner's staff. The Silver, or second place, award for Best Online Coverage of News was awarded to Holmes and his colleague Henry Redman for an investigative series into how police responded to the civil unrest and protests in Kenosha during 2020. Holmes was also awarded the Press Club's Silver (second-place) award for Public Service Journalism for articles focusing on police surveillance in Wisconsin.
Police surveillance company seeks to acquire notorious Israeli NSO Group
By: Isiah Holmes - June 15, 2022
L3 Harris, an American defense contractor that sold its Stingray surveillance technology to police departments is making yet another business venture. As reported by IntelligenceOnline, L3 Harris is moving towards a deal to acquire the Israeli-based NSO Group, whose products have been abused by organizations around the world. Privacy and telecommunications experts fear that the […]
Pocan and Lee lead push to cut Pentagon spending
By: Isiah Holmes - June 14, 2022
Legislation has been introduced by Wisconsin Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Black Earth) and California Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) aimed at cutting $100 billion from the country’s defense budget. The lawmakers, who serve as co-chairs of the Defense Spending Reduction Caucus, are proposing the legislation as a move to put the needs of people over the needs […]
Complaints mount over conduct of Whitewater PD
By: Isiah Holmes - June 13, 2022
For some time now, the Whitewater Police Department (WPD) has been under a cloud. Since December, the department’s police chief Aaron Raap, has been on administrative leave pending an ongoing internal investigation. Raap, who was hired as chief in 2018, was taken into custody following an alleged Thanksgiving fight with a family member. Though the […]
Wisconsin’s LGBTQ community confronts efforts to suppress visibility
By: Isiah Holmes - June 10, 2022
LGBTQ+ Pride Month, which goes on through June, is a celebration of visibility and acceptance. This year it is happening against a backdrop of coordinated suppressive efforts by some state legislators. Nevertheless, allies of Wisconsin’s LGBTQ community say they are undeterred and unafraid. As Gov. Tony Evers kicked off Pride Month with a flag-raising ceremony […]
Activists worry as Milwaukee inches closer to hosting the Republican convention
By: Isiah Holmes - June 3, 2022
On Wednesday Milwaukee city council unanimously approved a contract to host the 2024 Republican National Convention (RNC). The vote secures a second chance for Milwaukee to host a major political convention after the disappointment of hosting the 2020 Democratic National Convention (DNC), which was dramatically scaled back because of the COVID-19 pandemic If Milwaukee were […]
Special prosecutors won’t pursue charges in Jay Anderson case
By: Isiah Holmes - June 2, 2022
The brilliant sun and bright blue sky over Milwaukee on the first day of June didn’t penetrate the downtown Safety Building and circuit court where, on Wednesday, the parents of Jay Anderson Jr., dressed in black as if in mourning, navigated the massive concrete complex’s long hallways toward a courtroom. This was the day the […]
PFAS shuts down wells in the communities of Adams, Marshfield
By: Isiah Holmes - June 1, 2022
Environmental groups are sounding the alarm after drinking water wells in the communities of Marshfield and Adams were shut down last week due to tests by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) that found levels of PFAS (per- and polyfluroralkyl substances) high enough to be harmful for humans. Bill Davis, senior staff attorney for the […]
The Wisconsin GOP’s search for ‘inappropriate’ books in school districts
By: Isiah Holmes - May 31, 2022
Over the past few months, some Wisconsin Republican legislators have been scouring school libraries in their districts for potentially “inappropriate” books. The Legislature won’t return to session until next year. In the meantime, GOP lawmakers appear to be setting the stage for debates around what books should be restricted, and whether staff should be held […]
$2.2 million will fund contractors, technology needs for Milwaukee police
By: Isiah Holmes - May 25, 2022
Gov. Tony Evers has allocated an additional $2.2 million to augment operations within the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD). The funds will be used by MPD to hire civilian contractors to provide activities like ballistic technology used to investigate gun crimes and processing sexual assault kits. By contracting out some of these activities, it is hoped […]
Confinement of youth, staff shortages linger at Lincoln Hills/Copper Lake
By: Isiah Holmes - May 24, 2022
As the state finalizes plans to eventually close Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake juvenile prisons, the populations have grown since January, further straining employees in the understaffed facilities. The issue was raised at a recent meeting of the Governor’s Juvenile Justice Commission. “There are two primary concerns about the current situation at Lincoln Hills,” Benjamin […]
Republicans press cities to spend ARPA funds on police
By: Isiah Holmes - May 20, 2022
Republican lawmakers are continuing to hammer gun violence and homicide rates in the southeastern Wisconsin cities of Milwaukee and Racine. Disregarding calls to tighten gun laws and support violence prevention strategies, the GOP has anointed law enforcement as Wisconsin’s only solution. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos doubled down on that stance in a letter to the […]
Milwaukee officials blast Republican inaction on gun laws
By: Isiah Holmes - May 18, 2022
The city of Milwaukee continues to process a series of shootings in the downtown area last weekend. Known as the “Deer District,” in homage to the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team, the downtown entertainment district saw a trio of shooting sprees between 9:10 p.m. and 11:54 p.m., leaving more than 20 people injured. All of the […]