Michael Biesecker, 38, is an investigative reporter for The Associated Press. He lives in Durham, N.C., with his wife, Jenny Buelin-Biesecker, and their three young children.

He is also on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter

Before joining the AP in 2011, Biesecker worked as a state capital reporter for Raleigh for The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer, North Carolina’s two largest newspapers.

In 2008, Biesecker was part of a team that completed a five-part series on the state’s failed reform of its mental health system. The project, which uncovered more than $450 million in waste and 82 questionable deaths in state hospitals, was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in three categories and named a national finalist for the Investigative Reporters and Editors award. It was also honored with the McClatchy President’s Award, the newspaper chain’s highest distinction.

More recently, Biesecker has been writing stories about misconduct at the N.C. Highway Patrol and alleged cases of inmate beatings and sexual abuse in the state’s prisons and jails. A 2008 series on the wholesale deletion of e-mail by then-Gov. Mike Easley in violation of state law was honored with the AP/Managing Editors First Amendment Award.

Biesecker’s 2006 reports at The N&O about flawed lead testing by Durham's municipal water department was part of a package of stories on drinking water safety nominated for the Pulitzer and named as a finalist for national prizes in investigative and environmental reporting.

A native of Lexington, N.C., Biesecker previously worked at the Winston-Salem Journal covering the state department of transportation, the military and the environment. He is also a former member of the faculty at North Carolina State University, where he taught courses in news writing and editing.