The Florida Trib and Miami Herald won third place in the 2026 Esserman-Knight Journalism Awards for Stopped in Its Tracks: The Bus Safety Cash Grab, a joint investigation by Clara-Sophia Daly, a former journalist for the Miami Herald, and Nandhini Srinivasan, a former investigative reporting fellow for The Florida Trib. The award included a $2,500 prize.

“This is a textbook example of the power of local journalism and community engagement to give ordinary residents a voice and hold powerful institutions to account,” awards presenter Clifford Marks, a physician and member of the Esserman family, said at the ceremony, which was held at Florida International University’s Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center in Miami. 

Stopped in Its Tracks involved analyzing hundreds of copies of citations and videos for BusPatrol camera violations that failed to distinguish legal from illegal driving and were further frustrated by inconsistent police reviews. The private company, contracted by Miami-Dade School District, uses AI cameras on school buses to catch motorists illegally passing stopped buses. The steep fines for undeserved tickets accompanied by a lack of scheduled court sessions led to public outcry and sharing of tickets and accompanying videos, which Srinivasan and Daly analyzed. Their investigation showed that the private company and school district made millions of dollars in revenue from the questionable citations. Following publication of the investigation results, Miami-Dade officials withdrew from the program.

Casey Frank, The Florida Trib’s Special Projects Editor, accepted the award on behalf of Srinivasan and Daly. Frank called the collaborative effort with the Miami Herald a deeply reported series and a testament to the importance of investigative journalism. 

“The Sheriff said immediately after the story ran, we’re out,” Frank said. “We’re pulling the plug, the money grab is over.”

A panel of volunteer jurors – including professional journalists, educators, and community leaders – chose winners from more than 50 nominations and 15 finalists. Criteria included depth of reporting, inclusion of community perspectives, and documented impact.

The prestigious Esserman-Knight Journalism Awards program honors excellence in investigative and public service reporting in South Florida. It was founded by the Esserman family and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and is managed by The Miami Foundation. This year, the awards program was hosted in partnership with FIU’s Lee Caplin School for Journalism and Media and Press Forward South Florida.

Liz Flaisig is The Florida Trib’s Partnerships Manager. Her experience in journalism includes weekly, daily, and investigative reporting and editorial board writing at several publications including the Florida Times-Union, the Jacksonville Business Journal, and the Fort Pierce Tribune.

Liz Flaisig is The Florida Trib's Partnerships Manager.

Her experience in journalism includes weekly, daily, and investigative reporting and editorial board writing at several publications including the Florida Times-Union, the Jacksonville Business Journal, and the Fort Pierce Tribune. More recently, Liz served as department chair and instructor of creative writing at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts for 15 years. In addition to her research and development work for The Tributary, she is a private tutor for middle and high school students in English Language Arts and a graduate student in University of Rhode Island’s Library and Information Studies program.