13 people have died in auto accidents involving a faulty ignition switch in GM cars. But you'd have a hard time trying to uncover the names of those individuals; GM has remained tightlipped ever since its recall of 2.6 million vehicles began in February. Thankfully, The New York Times did some serious digging and managed to discover the identities of 12 victims — and details about a specific vehicle involved in the 13th death. The scenarios all match: each was a single-car accident, and the air bags failed to deploy every time.

The result is a story that underlines the heartache felt by families involved in GM's mess. Candice Anderson endured a decade-long wait before discovering that the car she was driving may have been partly responsible for her boyfriend's death. In the automaker's defense, some crashes involved other risk factors like drunk driving and high speeds. But GM has done a miserable job communicating with those affected — likely to shield itself from more litigation — and has made some questionable decisions, such as counting just one death in an accident that killed two young girls in its official tally of 13.