LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Deborah Yetter, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist best known for her reporting on abuse, neglect and children’s welfare issues, has retired after 38 years in the industry.

Yetter’s final day at the Courier Journal was last Friday, the newspaper reported. Her reporting spurred greater protections for Kentucky’s most vulnerable residents.

“Debby has received many well-deserved honors, awards and accolades during her almost four decades as a journalist, but the Courier Journal family will miss her for so much more than her stellar reporting,” Executive Editor Mary Irby-Jones said. “She is caring and compassionate, and many young journalists in our newsroom have benefited from her wisdom.”

Yetter’s coverage of Kentucky’s social services gave voice to society's most marginalized, including children, the disabled and those with mental illnesses.

Her stories on conditions in juvenile justice centers led to a federal civil rights investigation and changes in the state system. Her series called “Preying on Seniors” uncovered cases of abuse, neglect and a poor system of state care.

Yetter joined The Louisville Times in 1984, moving to The Courier Journal in 1987 after it merged with the Times. During her career at the Louisville newspapers, Yetter covered transportation, county government, federal courts, health, social services and the state legislature.