Howard Swindle

Clinton Howard Swindle was born on November 20, 1945, in Houston, Texas. He lived with his mother and father until he was 13, when he and his mother left his father. His mother later remarried. Howard attended the University of North Texas (then North Texas State University), in Denton, Texas, and earned his degree in Journalism. He then went to work at the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal until, instead of being drafted, decided to enlist in the US Navy, where he served three years during Vietnam. After his service, he returned to the paper, and after a short stint in Chicago, continued working at the Journal. In 1976, Swindle began working for The Dallas Times Herald, and was quite the reporter there until a dispute over a story caused him to quit in 1979, when the Dallas Morning News signed him up, starting a 25 year career. He ranged in jobs from Metro Editor to Special projects editor, but he was best known as an Investigative Reporter, where he cracked stories like racial discrimination in public housing, the savings and loan scandal, and the impulsive brutality of rogue law enforcement officers. Known as a meticulous journalist, he never took a day off work to write any of his books (6 in all). While working for the Dallas Morning News, he led the paper to 3 Pulitzer Prizes, beginning in 1986. He died in June 2004 after suffering from cancer.