EXCLUSIVE: Neon Tommy obtains records from health officials before they clamp down on access.

We requested records from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health of all swine flu-related deaths from the start of the outbreak in April. We received 44 death certificates. Since then, 13 more deaths have been attributed to swine flu, bringing the countywide total to 57.

Neon Tommy reporters analyzed the death records and interviewed family members, public health officials and doctors to see what the dozens of deaths suggest about the patterns of the illness and who remains most at risk. In several cases, the families we spoke with said they did not know their relatives had died of swine flu until we told them. Nearly half of the death records do not list swine flu as a cause of death.

We undertook this project to tell the stories of victims of swine flu in Los Angeles County, from the first death in May to whenever the crisis ends. Our goal is to put a human face on the epidemic and help the public evaluate the performance of health officials in addressing it.

This special report includes profiles of some swine flu victims, research into the legality of withholding death certificates from the public, copies of the certificates provided to Neon tommy, an interactive map detailing where swine flu has struck in L.A. County, and an in-depth look at how health department officials in Los Angeles and across the country are responding to this crisis.