How you ask a question is very important in establishing the basis for an effective interview; they open the door to knowledge and understanding of the facts as they relate to the matter with which we are asked to investigate.  The subtle art of productive questioning lies in knowing which questions to ask and when.  Asking effective interview questions also requires the interviewer to be cognizant of his/her verbal and nonverbal behavior as well.

There are two basic types of questions, open-ended questions and closed-ended questions; here are the differences:

• Open questions.  Open-ended questions require more than a simple “yes” or “no” answer.  They elicit the interviewee to describe, explain, or come to some conclusion based on their own understanding of the facts.  Asking open-ended questions increase the chances of getting additional details and ensure a greater accuracy of the facts from the interviewee’s perspective.

Examples of good open questions include, “How would you describe this accident?”  How did the accident happen?” or “Why did Joe fall off of the scaffolding?”

• Closed questions.  Closed questions implicate a very short or specific factual answer and can be helpful in directing the interviewee’s attention toward relevant information and establishing facts.  Closed questions can be used to pinpoint critical information.  You should only ask specific questions when you are looking for a specific answer.

Examples of good closed-ended questions include, “What time did the fire start?”  “Who was in the car with you when the accident occurred?” or “Did you see the stop sign?”

The correct investigative approach to interviewing anyone is with the time honored “Who, What, When, Where and Why” process.

Knowing who contributed or were associated with an event creates more opportunity to gather information but should not be used to assign blame to any one of them.  That is a job best left for legal counsel and a judge or jury.

Understanding what happened is the core of any insurance investigation.  All details that are relevant must be gathered and cataloged in the investigative report.

The time when something happened can reveal important elements in the evolution of the event being investigated.  For example, did you know that most fraudulent workers’ compensation claim accidents occur on Mondays or after vacations and major holidays, and then, most often early in the morning?

The place where an event occurred reveals important facts such as a physical layout of an accident scene or working conditions.

Asking a witness or claimant why something happened most often reveals the most useful information regarding any insurance claim.  “How” questions are often used interchangeably with “why” questions as they both require the respondent to describe the “mechanics” of an event.   These often get closest to the root cause of the event.  Asking “why questions” repeatedly often reveals more information than would normally be uncovered.  On the other hand, if asking why an accident happened causes a defensive reaction in the person being interviewed, you should consider it a red flag and make an effort to probe further when permitted.  I have found that when I ask a claimant, who is subsequently found to be faking or inflating their claim, why a specific loss occurred, they have a tough time “creating” enough facts to support their statement and eventually begin to feel the pressure that I may soon detect their deception.  This burden increases the nonverbal indicators of their deceit, prompting me to continue to ask questions so that these “facts” will be recorded and debunked later in the claims process.  As a private investigator I am only concerned with the collection of statements of fact, I’ll let someone else decide which statements are true.

You can liken the process of investigative interviewing to that of putting material into a funnel; at the top of the funnel goes the most information, elicited with open-ended questions asked early in the interview.  At the bottom of the funnel come the most pointed, closed ended questions meant to pinpoint and clearly define the facts of the investigation.  The process of developing these facts synthesizes somewhere in the middle of the funnel.  The subject’s broad based recollections and feelings about an event are eventually distilled into the cause-and-origin of the event.  If the investigation is based on a complicated situation, simplify the approach by organizing your “funneling technique” so that each aspect of the event is examined one at a time in its own funnel.

Here are 10 tips for creating and asking questions:

• Ask open-ended question to elicit the most information;
• Ask closed-ended questions to establish fact or to influence the direction and nature of an interview;
• Avoid asking leading questions, such as “Were you at the top of the ladder when you fell?”  Leading questions inject “facts,” which may or may not be true, directly into the question and must be avoided.  Instead ask, “How did you injure yourself?” Response: “I fell from a ladder.”  Follow up:  “Where were you on the ladder when you fell?”  Response:  “I was about two thirds the way up ladder.”  Follow up:  “Why did you fall?”
• Avoid using negative wording.  Ask, “Do you remember seeing the other car?” rather than, “You don’t remember seeing the other car do you?”
• Organize your questions into groups regarding related concepts (i.e. ask all of your questions pertaining the identity and description of a vehicle that was involved in an accident, then ask about the numbers and identities of witnesses, then ask for a description of the accident scene, then ask all of your questions regarding how it happened, etc. rather than asking questions without a logical order);
• Ask important questions several times in a variety of different ways;
• Do not use technical terms or investigative jargon with an interviewee unless you are sure that he/she understands specifically to what you are referring;
• Ask several simple questions rather than one complex question;
• If the answer seems overly complex, ask MANY more simple questions to clarify the answer;
• Ask questions for information rather than for confirmation.

Asking questions is obviously an important aspect of the interviewing process but it is only a part of the process.  An interview is a “guided conversation” requiring the private investigator to be both a sender of information (asking the questions) as well as a receiver of information (listening to the answer, understanding what new facts were gained and formulating another question).  Communication is a two-way street.  It is as important, if not more important, to be an effective listener as it is to be competent at asking questions.

This article is a small excerpt from Statements, Lies and videotape: A Private Investigator’s Guide to Conducting Insurance Claim Investigations, an online continuing education course for private investigators

Before you conduct physical or electronic surveillance you should be competent and well trained in the technical and legal aspects of surveillance.  If for any reason you have violated a subject’s rights and are indeed found negligent in a court of law, not only can you or your agency be held liable, but the client hiring you or your agency can also be held liable for damages.

Conducting surveillance illegally is just not worth the consequences (i.e. losing your business, your license, your reputation).  If for some reason you are placed in a situation that may involve trespassing, entrapment or some other violation, think before you commit.

Some of the possible risks that may arise from physical surveillance are traffic violations, trespassing, roping and entrapment, invasion of privacy, and stalking.

Traffic Violations

In all instances, you should obey the law to the best of your capacity and traffic violations are no different.  Seldom are we ever working a case that is so important as to jeopardize the general public due to careless or reckless driving and the flagrant disregard for traffic laws.  If you have an accident because of negligent acts committed during an investigation your client will be held liable as well; this is not good for positive word of mouth advertising.

Trespassing

Trespassing is simply the act of entering private property without the consent of the land owner.  Trespassing can be a very complicated subject, mostly because state laws vary so extensively.  As an investigator, the key thing to remember in gathering your evidence, whether photographically or otherwise, is that if you violate trespassing laws while gathering your evidence then all that evidence is going to be inadmissible in a court of law.   Yes, there are states that still allow an investigator to go on a third party’s property with consent, such as a neighbor.  Again you should thoroughly research your state’s laws on trespassing prior to setting up in the neighbor’s yard.

A stationary technical surveillance platform should never be placed on the subject’s private property. Nor should an investigator enter posted private property or attempt to utilize a right of way to access a better vantage point of the subject’s property. Right of ways are legal property agreements between two parties and the fact that a right of way exists on the subject’s property does not make it a public thoroughfare.

Roping and Entrapment

Roping is the obtaining of information from another person by means of legal deception.  For instance, a private investigator acting drunk in a lounge in order to gain the confidence of a drinking buddy is “roping that person.”

Roping, however, can also lead into nefarious acts such as dropping a bunch of loose change on a subject’s porch in order to videotape him bending over to pick the coins up during a disability assignment.

Roping is, in many instances, very obvious to a judge and jury and should never be attempted as it could cause your client exorbitant amounts of money in civil suit damages.  Roping is synonymous with pretexting and the investigator should be mindful that the things he does or says may very well come out in a courtroom.

Entrapment is creating a condition in which the target of an investigation is required to perform a certain action.  Letting the air out of a target’s tires in order to obtain photographs of his ability to change a tire is entrapment because the subject is required to change the tire in order to use his vehicle.

In the instance of an undercover agent investigating employee theft, the investigator must be careful not to do or say anything that entices or encourages the subject(s) to do anything illegal.  His job is to detect theft not to cause it; he may assist but never insist.

In order to obtain evidence by means of pretending to be an accomplice in this situation you must be absolutely sure of the following precepts:

1. The plan and criminal intent must originate in the suspect’s own mind;
2. The target must commit all of the essential elements of the crime.

Invasion of Privacy

“Invasion of Privacy” deals with the area of expected privacy by an individual.  Any evidence obtained in violation of an individual’s privacy will not be admissible in a court of law.  Privacy is “the condition or state of being free from public attention to intrusion into or interference with one’s acts or decisions.” (Black’s Law Dictionary.) Therefore, surveillance in a public place is not private and there is no reasonable expectation of privacy in a public place.  Determining whether the law protects your privacy requires knowledge of the law and it is often a question of what society deems is reasonable.

Surveillance in areas such as bathrooms, locker rooms, changing/dressing rooms, bedrooms and other areas where a person should expect a high level of personal privacy is off limits.

Stalking

Stalking is defined as “a term used to describe unwanted attention by individuals (and sometimes groups of people) to others. Stalking behaviors are related to harassment and intimidation. It may also be used to refer to criminal offenses or civil wrongs that include conduct which some people consider to be stalking, such as those described in law as “harassment” or similar terms.

Over the past decade, most states have passed legislation prohibiting stalking. Investigators conducting surveillance must be aware of their own state’s stalking statutes and take the necessary steps in their surveillance activities to prevent themselves from being on the wrong side of a lawsuit.

One example that comes to my mind where surveillance may be alleged as stalking is the surveillance tactic of “rough shadowing.” Rough shadowing is a tactic used by investigators who are “public,” overzealous, or outright blatant in their surveillance activities such as parking outside the subject’s home in full view of neighbors, following subjects into places of business, or publicly videotaping subjects with no effort to conceal their motives or actions. This method of surveillance exposes the subject to public disgrace, ridicule, contempt or public embarrassment and may potentially result in a lawsuit. Remember Schultz v. Frankfort M. Accident & P.G. Insurance Company, 139 N.W. 386 (1913)? The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiff where the plaintiff had filed suit that he was being investigated through the use of rough shadowing. The plaintiff’s primary complaint was he could not perform his daily duties in a natural manner.

Bottom line, surveillance is to be covert and should never be openly and blatantly performed and never cause the subject to suffer any type of substantial emotional distress.

When you have a moment check out your state’s statues regarding stalking: http://www.esia.net/State_Stalking_Laws.htm

This article is a small excerpt from Serious Surveillance: Obtaining Evidence that Stands up in Courts, an online continuing education course for private investigators.

1)  Dictionary mining

This method is used by spam bots to guess email addresses, but it can be a valuable technique for online investigation as well.

Subjects will often use the same nicknames for their emails as they do for forums and blogs. So if the person of interest is sweetsparkles02 chances are the person’s email is sweetsparkels02@hotmail.com. An investigator can try sending a test message to that email and wait for a bounce back. If ‘delivery-failure bounce back message’ message is not sent back it means that sweetsparkels02@hotmail.com is real email address. Some hackers try to gain access to those emails by selecting “forgot password” link and guessing the secret question.

Discovering what Aliases a person uses can be done by searching for the person’s name, for example places such as Twitter will show the username associated with the person’s real name. Other tools for checking where the username appears are http://socialmention.com/ and http://checkusernames.com/

2) Reverse Image Tracking through Exif Data/Tineye

Armed with a name it is possible to find web-sites a person visits. Once such a site is discovered it is possible to perform a reverse lookup on the images to A) Uncover additional sites visited by the target B) Discover a person’s location.

A) Profile picture can be used to discover other sites visited by the target by checking which other sites have the same profile image. Web-sites like tineye.com, show all other sites with the same image. This can be particularly revealing for catching cheating spouses which post the same profile picture across multiple dating sites.

B) Smartphones often Geotag pictures with GPS coordinates, which means it’s possible to uncover the location of where a picture was taken by looking inside its EXIF data. Many sites including Facebook delete this information, but sites like Twitter or Photobucket preserve it.

3) Picture fishing

Another way to get pictures of a person is by asking. Fishing out pictures can be done by means of a fictitious dating profile. To get the most recent picture one needs to ask the subject to hold a spoon in order to prove that their profile picture is a recent one. The picture sent by the target may reveal GPS coordinates in the EXIF data.

4) File search

File search can be very effective. There is a special Google search operator which shows files stored on uncovered servers. Using this method it’s possible to discover files belonging to a person, like a CV.

The search is done by typing the following command in Google.com: intitle:”index of” “parent directory” john doe (John Doe should be replaced with subject’s name or alias).

The above search format is known as “Advanced Google Search Operator”.

5) Google Alerts

Setting up a Google alerts on the subject’s name and/or alias (google.com/alerts) is done to get up to date notifications from Google when the name comes up somewhere online.

This is like employing Google to stay on guard for all new mentions of the person’s name/alias. As soon as Google discovers the name online it sends a notification.

6) Search within a site

Oftentimes a person will hang out on certain web-sites. Unfortunately many sites (especially blogs) do not have a built-in “user search” function that shows all pages where the subject has interacted. (left a comment, created a profile etc.)

In that case it’s possible to do the following search in Google site:doman.com John Doe ,while replacing the domain.com and John Doe with name of the site and subject’s name/nickname. This will show all comments made by the subject on a given site, example of a query would be site: pursuitmag.com ”chris says:”

This can be useful for building target’s psychological profile. Oftentimes people mention personal details in comments such as the city they’re in and sites they attend. This a good source of additional leads and a chance to apply other steps described above.

About the Author:

Robert Sinclair is an online investigation enthusiast and chief-editor of http://whycall.me

“The legal environment is so radically different in France that the job of private investigators here is almost not the same as in the United States,” says Arnaud Pelletier, founder of Agence Leprivé, an investigations agency in the greater Paris region. France has one of Europe’s most stringent privacy laws and tight governmental oversight on the small corps of active, licensed private detectives (estimated at less than 1,000, according to the largest French P.I. Union, S.N.A.R.P.). French investigative pros are quick to tell you that they have to know the law on their fingertips, at a level of subtlety difficult to grasp for first-time foreign partners. “Our clients from overseas are always surprised by the vast quantity of actions that are illegal in France,” says Jean-Emmanuel Derny, of Roche Investigations, an agency in Paris who also heads S.N.A.R.P.  “We tell them: well, what you just asked me would be illegal here, but we’ll help you reach your objective legally, in a different way.”

The homeland of Eugène François Vidocq, the nineteenth century former convict turned ground-breaking private investigator, France is in the process of polishing the image of its private investigators, known under the acronym ARP, for “Agent de Recherche Privée” (Private Research Agents). ARPs are submitted to a strict, nationwide licensing system with special bridges to former Law Enforcement. Attorneys are barred from conducting investigations, thus have to hire P.I.s for their investigative needs. But unlike in the U.S., French P.I.s rarely take part in criminal investigations. By law, they can’t investigate for a party during an ongoing criminal case, but can be hired in anticipation of legal action, or after a ruling in order to perform a counter-investigation. As a result, most P.I.s work on civil cases and, in the context of a deepening Eurozone crisis, business investigations.

Business investigations are also the baguette and butter of French P.I.s with international clients, who are often interested in background and pre-employment checks.  That’s when private investigator Jean C. Schmitt does some explaining: “American partners ask us for online background checks that can be performed in a matter  of minutes, using proprietary databases or credit reports… But these things don’t even exist in France,” says the founder of France Investigations in Paris, who is also the French Ambassador of the World Association of Detectives. Adds Arnaud Pelletier, who also run Stratég-IE, a business intelligence consultancy firm: “Our American colleagues are always surprised to hear that private detectives in France have no more rights than the average citizen. Our only right is to ask for information from people without divulging our profession and the goal of our mission. Our investigations are based a lot on elicitation.”

And even though more public records are becoming available online, most retrievals require a visit to government agencies, sometimes repeated to get around a stubborn clerk. Given all these factors, a “people locate” starts at 500 Euros (655 USD), according to several professionals. But many other investigations are on par with Western rates, according to Anglo-Saxon professionals who have worked with French agencies in the past: “There were no surprises and costs were reasonable and agreed upon before assigning the case,” says Bob Heales, of R.A. Heales & Associates Ltd in Colorado. Most French P.I.s often charge anywhere between 60 and 90 Euros an hour (a price quote followed by “HT” means “before taxes,” to which foreign-based clients are not submitted), but that can go up to 120 or 180 depending on the location and specialty. When subbing for foreign colleagues, French detectives usually cut a special rate. “We have conducted many cases in France and found [our French partners] very competitively priced,” says New York investigator John Leto, founder of JL & Associates, Ltd.

In some cases, information can be gleaned perhaps more efficiently than in the U.S. Some public records, such as company registration, are chock full of data, as the French government requests the name and marital status of each founder, partner and stakeholder of a company. Pretexting  is often referred to as a “phone scenario,” and can be performed legally within boundaries, with a good success rate as the French are generally rather trusting. As more French citizens resort to legal actions, Jean C. Schmitt senses that the public is getting more accepting of private investigators: “I find that by just introducing myself, I can obtain a lot of information in a straight-forward manner,” he says. Business investigations can be surprisingly revealing, says Jean-Emmanuel Derny, but domestic cases are more of a challenge:  “Our biggest enemies are the movies: people have become more jittery,” says this former engineer, who has worked in the United States. “Criminals are easier to trail. I once shadowed a bandit for weeks and he never paid attention to me.  But in divorce cases, people turn around in mere seconds!”

Leto’s advice for selecting a French investigator: “Using different associations was the best route and continues to be the best route in getting an accountable colleague.” French P.I.s with a good command of English tend to be members of international associations such as The World Association of Detectives (W.A.D) [full disclosure: I am a member] and signal their fluency with a webpage in English. When conducting surveillance in France with local P.I.s, Leto used his Italian to decipher signs: “The street signs were on the buildings, which I found unfamiliar. But breaking bread day in and day out, working in close quarters, seemed to make the transition go smoother.” As in some other countries, “the French do like their meal breaks” he notices. “The funniest thing I find about the French, is that they don’t like to sign anything that is in English,” remarks John Moses of Longmere Consultants in England. He’s had French investigators or bailiffs provide their court statement or certificate of service in French. “Not a problem… We simply get their statement translated.” He describes an otherwise smooth experiences, from serving documents to carrying out land searches, property enquiries and people-locates.

In order to select an agency, the French P.I. Union U.F.E.D.P. recommends 4 steps:

 1. Check if the agency is licensed by the French government.

2. Verify that the agency is insured (ask for “Assurance en Responsabilité Civile Professionnelle”)

3. Check if the agency is registered as a legitimate company (it should have a 9-digit number called n° SIREN)

4. Make sure the agency complies with the law by using encryption technology (“logiciel de chiffrement”) to communicate confidential information to the client.

Alas, checking the credentials of French investigative agencies is not as straightforward as it could be. P.Is are not required to publish their license number (“Agrément Préfecture or préfectoral») on their website, yet many do and even link to a PDF of the document.  Websites usually mention membership to one or several of the French P.I. unions, which are another source to contact. License lookup should soon get easier, says investigator and union leader Jean-Emmanuel Derny. He is also the representative of the P.I. industry in a recently-formed government body called C.N.A.P.S. (Conseil National des Activités Privées de Sécurité – National Council for Private Security Activities). Private security companies, including P.I. agencies, are now depending on C.N.A.P.S. for authorizations, approvals, professional cards, inspections, and the imposing of sanctions. While controversial, seen as restrictive and taxing by some, this new regulatory system will improve the quality of private investigations in France, says Derny: “This will help us weed out the dishonest P.I.s, clean up the profession and elevate it to higher standards.”

Emmanuelle Welch is a French-American private investigator in Washington, DC, founder of French Connection Research. She has had no prior business relationship with any of the professionals interviewed and contacted them through associations and referrals.

SIDEBAR: Is that legal in France?

A quick roundup with Yves Conversano, private detective in Montpellier, owner of A.RI.A. (Agence de Recherches et d’Investigations Aigle) and leading instructor at IFAR, a state-sanctioned training center for private investigators (The following Q&A is for general information only and does not contain legal advice, as situations vary with many possible circumstances.)

Is running a surveillance on an employee legal in France?

Legal, under certain conditions, if the subject has signed an agreement allowing this practice at the start of employment. Surveillance is only authorized during the subject’s working hours: for instance, the lunch break is considered private.

Surveillance on a spouse?

Legal, as long as the couple lives under the same roof. There are restrictions on unmarried couples. But to be clear, you can’t put an internet date or someone you met at a night-club under surveillance.

Photograph someone in their home, from  a public spot?

It’s illegal to take photos on private property. You can’t photograph a subject in his front yard, inside his car. But pictures can be taken in public places and can be used in court for insurance investigations and in civil cases, when required.

Put GPS tracker under a vehicle? 

If the client is the owner of the vehicle, you can track it. Otherwise, it will be illegal.

Dumpster diving, when the trash is outside on a public sidewalk?

It is legal to retrieve evidence from the trash when it is in mixed in the truck. But if it is still in a private container, even on a public sidewalk, the trash is considered on private premises. If you are convinced that you will find evidence on private property, you have to ask an authorization to dumpster-dive from a judge.

In a nutshell?

It’s never that simple, but in short: As soon as you  get near the private sphere, you usually need judicial authorization. It’s easy to make what I call a “judicial-technical mistake.” That’s why French P.I.s need to be intimately familiar with the law.

About the Author:

Emmanuelle Welch  is a French-American licensed Private Investigator in Washington, DC.  She specializes in bilingual investigations with her agency, French Connection Research.

She has had no prior business relationship with any of the professionals interviewed and contacted them through associations and referrals.

Pensacola, FL, April 4, 2012

Click here to view the approval document

“We worked closely with the Missouri Board of Private Investigator and Private Fire Investigator Examiners during the curriculum review process.” said http://PIeducation.com Course Director, L. Scott Harrell. “The Board wanted to ensure our training met their professional standards and that we would serve the licensees of Missouri with quality training opportunities. We’re proud to have met and exceeded their expectations.” Harrell concluded.

The following continuing education courses are currently approved in Missouri:

Serious Surveillance: Obtaining Video Evidence that will Stand up in Court  – Approved for 14 CE Hours in Missouri

Investigations in the Land of the Lost: The Art of Skip Tracing and Missing Persons Investigations – Approved for 14 CE Hours in Missouri

Industry Ethics and Laws for Private Investigators – Approved for 2 CE Hours in Missouri

We suggest to all of our Missouri continuing education clients to take one of the above approved 14 hour investigative studies courses and if you order any of these courses priced at $119.95 or above you will receive the 2-hour Ethics course absolutely FREE.

Missouri Continuing Education Requirements:

Chapter 324 – Occupations and Professions General Provisions
Section 324.1122 A licensee shall successfully complete sixteen hours of continuing education units biennially. An individual not licensed as a private investigator or private fire investigator who is hired as an employee by a private investigator agency or private fire investigator agency shall successfully complete eight hours of continuing education units biennially. Such continuing education shall be relevant to the private investigator or private fire investigator business and shall be approved by the board as such.

About PIeducation.com

PIeducation.com has provided CEUs to Investigation Agencies and their employees via Internet and distance education since July 1, 2002. As of March 2012, the company has conferred over 104,000 CE hours to private investigator licensees in the states of Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Kansas, Oregon, Louisiana, New Mexico, Arizona and Iowa.

After a recent bout of scandals and negative press in the UK, the public perception of the humble private investigator is beginning to shift in the wrong direction, causing this once most captivating of creatures to be treated with the same brand of disdain once reserved exclusively for politicians, bankers and lower echelons of tabloid press.

Almost wholly responsible for this shift was information uncovered during the Leveson inquiry into phone hacking by staff members at News International’s now defunct UK Sunday tabloid, the News of the World (NOTW.)

Over the course of the inquiry, shocked Brits learned that NOTW journalists had secured scoops using an arsenal of dubious tactics.  Hacking into the voicemail accounts (including one belonging to the parents of a murder victim) and plying cops with champagne and cash in return for information were among tactics used by NOTW journalists to secure the stories that became a Sunday morning staple for the UK’s gossip hungry readers.

Also revealed was the extent of involvement of private investigators in helping journalists to obtain this information.   Among the rabble to receive jail sentences for their part in phone hacking was Glenn Mulcaire, who tapped into voicemails of the Royal Family and whose name is now as famous as the celebrities on whom he once snooped.

Private investigators have been dragged even further into the mire by the actions of four rogue detectives who were jailed on February 27^th for the quaint-sounding crime of ‘blagging’ banks into revealing personal information.

All this has caused politicians in the UK to begin looking seriously at regulating the industry.  A newly formed committee made up of select senior politicians has already begun hearing evidence from PIs and those affected by the investigations that were conducted around the same time our four rogue investigators were clapped in irons.

The Association of British Investigators now says it is likely that there will be some form of regulation, licensing or certification of PIs before the end of 2013, and the other two UK industry bodies are broadly in support.  We are hopeful this regulation may help to repair the British PI’s tarnished image.

A statement on the Association’s website, states:  “There has been some comment and speculation as to what is to happen about regulating the investigative sector.

“As may be expected the representative bodies have views on how such regulation should take shape. I know that some views vary but there does appear, at least on the face of it, a desire that some form of regulation be implemented.”

The UK’s pro-regulation camp doesn’t have to search far for inspiration. After all, it was one of Britain’s other last Goliaths of self-regulated industry, the press, that helped us into the mess in the first place.

Bob Clowrey works with www.privatedetective.co.uk an international agency based in Manchester, UK.

Editorial Hint: Blagging is “knowingly or recklessly obtaining or disclosing personal data or information without the consent of the data controller.” and champers is British slang for Champagne.

What if you could outsource some of that time, shoe leather, and expertise, bill for it, and say yes to a wider variety of cases? How smart would you look if you had a savvy private eye in your rolodex, a gal with a hefty rolodex of her own?

The Whys:

Outsource Work

The May 5, 2011 edition of The Economist printed a two-page story about the legal industry in America. They use Howrey (one of the world’s top 100 law firms) as an example of sea-change facing the profession. Aside from bankruptcy, securities litigation, and regulation issues, the world of 700 member law firms has been hit hard. Gone are the lucrative mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and it seems that clients are seeking, even demanding, alternatives to the ubiquitous billable hour.

One point The Economist makes: Clients are demanding “…that their lawyers pass certain routine work to cheaper contractors.”

Should lead counsel be in the field interviewing witnesses, canvasing neighborhoods, and personally vetting experts? Someone must, but these things take a lot of time and often lead to endless cul-de-sacs of evidentiary dead ends. Why not pay a professional investigator to track down hard-to-find witnesses, canvas the area, and vet experts?

Outsource Expertise

It used to be that an associate could read up on a topic and brief the partner, each being paid handsomely for the private course of study. Now, more often than not, it makes more sense to bring in a qualified expert in certain fields, pay her a flat fee or lower hourly rate, and likely be better informed in the long run.

The Economist points out that law firms can guarantee themselves work by becoming “…experts in other industries, not just areas of legal practice.” An alternative to this, The Economist points out, would be outsourcing the expertise.

That’s where professional investigators come in. An attorney can leverage expertise, an investigative firm’s collective experience, to his own benefit. A true professional investigator either maintains expertise in various areas, or maintains affiliations with industry specific experts. Either way, an adept lawyer will realize the value of knowing a professional investigator, the consummate information professional, the guy who knows a guy.

First and foremost, attorneys are experts in the law. Some lawyers also craft themselves into industry specific experts: real estate, finance, criminal defense, aviation, medical malpractice, etc. The lawyer/expert is usually a person who takes on one type of case and charges top-of-the market fees for his niche. However, for the majority in the legal profession, criminal defense work can mean anything from a criminal charge for inadvertently carrying a four-inch pocketknife through airport security (a misdemeanor in Tennessee, apparently) to first-degree murder (widely accepted as felonious activity anywhere in the country), and literally anything in between.

Experts in the law, a general defense team should be well equipped to argue legal points; but what about specific issues in obscure cases from various disciplines in which they are not schooled?

Can, or should, counsel review a real estate appraisal report for a fraud case? It seems easy enough, but what about making sure the report follows Uniform Standards of Appraisal Practice? What are the four forces that are required to create value? These are industry-specific issues in which most attorneys do not (nor should they be expected to) have any competency.

Would it be advisable for a lawyer to analyze blood spatter in a crime scene photo? Should an attorney be expected to break down a financial statement and explain in detail whether it is misleading or fraudulent?

Why not hire a professional investigator knowledgeable in that field to bring one up to speed? By delegating work to experts in various fields, counsel makes his firm look savvy, connected, and thorough.

In the end, law firms must decide on a case-by-case basis whether to add a PI to the defense team. If your client left his cheese knife in his backpack after a weekend of hiking and finds himself in the clutches of TSA and airport police, an investigator probably isn’t necessary. If, however, your client has been charged with fraud in conjunction with an eleventy-billion dollar Ponzi scheme, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to consider hiring a professional investigator. Client is a local charged with DUI, no real need for a PI. Client’s an international banking mogul charged with attempted rape, you bet a PI is one of your first calls.

The Hows:

Background Research – The Accusers

In a criminal case, be it white-collar crime or assault, it is often very helpful to construct a detailed background on each of the key players. But painting a true, detailed picture of each character requires far more than a simple criminal records search. A professional investigator digs deep, makes hundreds of calls, knocks on doors, and follows narrative threads that can make or break a case.

When Dominique Strauss-Kahn (DSK) was accused of rape in May of 2010, his defense team hired professional investigators. Media outlets decried the practice of “digging up dirt” on the victim, claiming that this would turn a jury against the defense. However, in the end it was this very research into the credibility of the victim that lead to the dismissal of charges by the district attorney.

The investigators in the DSK case didn’t just poke around; they hauled through every point of interest exhaustively, chasing down countless leads. At the end of the day, they painted a picture of a woman who had been turning tricks in the hotel for months, an opportunist with sketchy associations. Her credibility shot, the case went away.

Your client doesn’t have to be a public figure to justify the services of a professional investigator. In a much lower profile case in a rural West Tennessee town, one investigator pored through employment records of a local shop owner who claimed an African American man had assaulted him. The case was based on the word of the shop owner, a former small-town firefighter. The investigator, after leafing through document after document, found a simple note from the then firefighter to his superior. The note was vitriolic and inflammatory, full of racial invective. Top it off with the hand-drawn Aryan Nations symbols neatly framing the correspondence and the case was tossed out.

The offending document was public record, part of a public servant’s personnel file, but it was buried in a pile of files at the back of the fire hall. Had this investigator not taken the initiative to thoroughly vet the accuser, the defendant would likely have been unjustly incarcerated and had yet another criminal charge in his jacket.

From simple assault to rape to fraud, a detailed background investigation into all of the players can make or break a case. Done properly and in a timely manner, this type of investigation can many times even avoid a trial altogether.

Background Research – The Experts

You know the state is going to parade out a troupe of experts, recognized professionals who will testify for the prosecution. These experts have, in theory, been vetted by the court.

The term vet, as a verb, is a vestige from the horse track. A thoroughbred must be checked for health and soundness by a veterinarian before it is allowed to race. Vet, therefore, simply means to check, to analyze and evaluate prior to a performance. In this situation, it is imperative to thoroughly vet all experts, the ones the prosecution is putting forth as well as the ones you plan to use.

A local law firm decided to rely on an appraisal report, prepared by a highly credentialed appraiser, in a fraud case involving eminent domain. The appraiser prepared the report using sales that occurred after the taking had been announced, a factor that greatly impacted real estate values in the immediate area. This is improper methodology, and it is potentially misleading. Had the law firm thought to vet the expert, they would have learned that he had been – in a very public way – excused from a previous court case for this very same practice. Since they relied on credentials alone, they ended up in a bit of a pickle when their expert was exposed as not-so-expert after all.

The Case of the Inexpert Appraiser was one that any professional investigator, especially one with experience in real estate and fraud, would have discovered in relatively short order. It was reported in a local newspaper. There are countless such “experts” who, if properly vetted, could be excused.

Use your investigator to do the homework. Paying an investigator to do the research is much less expensive than taking your time to pore through the Code of Professional Conduct for Professional Engineers.

Locating and Interviewing Witnesses

Trial phase

Once you take a complicated criminal case, call your professional investigator as soon as practicable. A professional investigator will, upon retention, begin working on a list of potential witnesses. Brief your investigator on as many details of the case as possible. Provide your investigator with a full case file: police reports, statements, crime scene photos, sketches, etc. Your investigator is performing work product, which should (in most cases and in most states) be protected.

The first step is to identify and locate all witnesses in the police reports and statements. Obviously, the professional investigator will (should) interview all of the witnesses that the police have identified. Some of them may not want to talk to you, and they don’t necessarily have to, but a good investigator has a very persuasive manner. A professional investigator will be able to deconstruct witness statements, compare and contrast statements taken at various times, and help you to identify flaws and potential areas of exploitation.

The second step, and arguably the most useful, is the neighborhood canvas. A professional investigator will conduct a thorough search for witnesses that the prosecution either could not find, or that the prosecution would rather you not find. A neighborhood canvas is time consuming, tedious, and requires a systematic approach. But, conducted property, it can unearth valuable, game-changing information.

The Appeal Phase

Let’s say that your client has been found guilty of first-degree murder and received the death penalty. The crime happened in 1992. Your firm, located in New York, took on the habeas case pro bono. The crime occurred in Memphis. Witnesses have moved. People have forgotten, or have claimed forgetfulness. Time, as they say, marched on. Your resources are tight, and the stakes are extremely high. Please, I beg you, hire a private investigator.

Example: A law firm took on an appeals case here in Tennessee. One witness had offered statements which described three variations of the story, with important differences. Her statement to the police said the defendant had blood on her hands. Her statement to the prosecutor claimed the defendant was “covered” in blood. Her statement to the defense read that the defendant had cuts on her fists and bruises on her face.

The witness owned a house in Germantown, TN. Her daughters lived nearby. They didn’t especially want Mom, by then in her late 70s, to face all this badness again. They would not, under any circumstances, reveal where mom was. A professional investigator, who was called in after three years of trying to locate this witness, found her in less than a day.

Turns out, mom had wanted to set the record straight for years.

Review of Crime Scene – Picking Apart the Prosecution’s Work

Professional investigators are fact checkers, not advocates; but shoddy work or unscrupulous work by the prosecution should be exploited. A professional investigator with proficiency in police procedures can help you find flaws in work conducted by the police and the prosecution.

If the Officer-in-Charge provides a less-than-detailed narrative description, there may be a problem hiding behind his omissions. Are the first responder’s notes consistent with the OIC’s notes? Are there pages missing (are the pages numbered)? Details, details, details…

You will likely find it beneficial to have your professional investigator visit the crime scene, take pictures, make sketches, verify sight lines, etc. This simple act can turn up revealing inconsistencies.

Example: Key witness told police that he saw defendant beat the victim with a shovel in the alleyway. Police report indicated that witness lived in Apt. 7B. After comparing the crime scene sketches and photographs with the actual building, the investigator realized that apt 7B faced the street, with no windows facing the alleyway. There was no way the key witness in Apt. 7B could see a shovel fight, or anything else, in the alleyway.

The investigator spent two hours on site, measuring, videotaping, and drawing the scene. Upon return to the office, the investigator made a simple two-dimensional sketch showing the exact place of the crime in the alley and the view the witness had from unit 7B. The police tried to explain, but…

Turns out, the witness had a few outstanding warrants when this crime occurred, completely unrelated. The police, based on his later testimony, had indicated that if he said he saw the crime, they would forget about the outstanding warrants. Details, details, details…

Conclusion

As a criminal defense attorney, people and cases are likely tugging at you from every direction. Why not part out the routine tedium to a qualified professional investigator, and focus on matters of law. Leverage the expertise of your investigator, and you can be more effective. If used property, a professional investigator can make you look smarter. Instead of burning up hours, most likely expensive hours, of your time canvasing, interviewing, and documenting, hire a professional investigator to do your legwork and, quite possibly, make your case.

NOTE: All anecdotes in this piece have been changed. Location, gender, and case specific details have been altered to avoid revealing any of our client’s information. The stories are taken from [FIND] Investigations case files, fellow professional investigators, and national news items.

Thomas H. Humphreys lives in Nashville, TN where he shares a house, an office, and a life with his wife and partner Kim Green. Mr. Humphreys is an award winning journalist and has contributed to international travel publications, regional magazines and news papers, as well as various public radio outlets. Mr. Humphreys owns [FIND] Investigations, a full service private investigations company.

[FIND] Investigations Website
[FIND] Investigations Blog
Email Thomas

The course is completely online and is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The format makes training both affordable and practical; anyone can complete the entire course from wherever and whenever he or she wants! Students, and their employers, no longer need to bear the inconvenience or burdensome expense of travel and time away from work. There is no time limit in which a student must complete a course; they may take as much time as needed and work at their own pace. Our courses are competitively priced and group discounts are available upon request.

Our primary goal when creating the 70-hour Georgia private detective pre-licensing course was to provide a superior training experience over and above anything else available on the market and, through regular updates, to keep it that way. Upon completion of this course, the student will not only have obtained the fundamental skills and tools necessary to considerably shorten the “learning curve” required to be a working private investigator in Georgia, but they will also have been exposed to the inner-workings of a number of different investigative specialties as well.

Going way “beyond the basics” means that our graduates are ready for success!

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There are two types of body armor – soft body armor, which is used in regular bullet and stab proof vests, and hard armor, which is rigid, reinforced body armor, and is used in high risk situations by police tactical units and combat soldiers.

A piece of body armor will traditionally be made up of two sections – the outer carrier, and the soft armor inner protective panels. It is important to remember that a carrier without any type of protective panels contained within it will not provide any protection against ballistic, stab or spike attacks.

The outer carrier can be made from a range of materials, and can be available in a range of colors, depending on the users requirements. The soft armor protective panels that are placed within the carrier will provide the protection offered by the body armor, and are normally light weight and flexible. These protective panels are available in a range of levels, and can be designed to defeat a variety of threats.

When a higher level of protection is required then hard armor can also be used in addition to the normal soft armor panels. Hard armor is available in a range of sizes, and can be worn in front of soft armor in specially made pockets on the outer carrier, or in separate hard armor carriers.

A Brief History Of Body Armor

There have been many different forms of body armor in use throughout history. The ancient Greeks used body armor to protect their soldiers, as did the Roman Legions, with examples of their body armor being found that date back to as early as 1400 BC. Around the year 500 BC chain-mail body armor was invented, which provided the wearer with a higher level of protection against attack than previous types of body armor. Made from thousands of iron rings that were linked together, it created a flexible, mesh like barrier that provided a high level of protection against weapons such as spears and swords. It was highly effective against the weapons of the era, but over time chain-mail was improved by adding metal armor plates to provide a higher level of protection for vulnerable parts of the body. Gradually these pieces of plate armor became bigger and more effective, and eventually replaced chain-mail as the main type of body armor that was used by armies around the world.

The introduction of firearms led to developments in the production of body armor, as plate armor was ineffective against high velocity projectiles. This led to the development of heavy duty types of plate armor, which provided a higher level of protection for the wearer, but was also heavier and more restrictive than earlier types of body armor The use of plate armor declined during the 18^th century, as the development in firearms again meant that only the most expensive and heavy types of body armor could provide reliable protection against them. However during the early 20^th century some types of plate armor became popular again with many countries, especially as it proved effective at stopping pieces of shrapnel that often proved deadly on the battlefield. Several countries used different forms of plate armor in both World War I and II, and traditional types of plate armor were worn by U.S. Foot soldiers as late as the Korean and Vietnamese wars.

The biggest development for body armor was in the late 1960′s, when DuPont™ began development of their para-aramid fiber Kevlar®. Lightweight and incredibly strong, Kevlar® allowed manufacturers to develop personal types of body armor that could be worn comfortably for long periods of time, and that also provided protection that could not be matched by any previous forms of body armor Over time other companies also developed their own types of body armor using a variety of revolutionary materials, meaning that body armor become both widely available and also affordable for the first time in history.

Body armor was traditionally used to protect soldiers and military personnel, however the last 25 years has seen an increase in the use of body armor to provide protection for police officers, security guards, door supervisors, ship crew and many others. The increase in gun and knife crime around the world means the use of body armor is now essential in many industries, and rapid developments in body armor means it can now provide a high level of protection against a broad range of day to day threats.

The introduction of lightweight personal body armor means that it’s now commonplace in many industries that previously would not have used body armor For example the increase in sea piracy has led to many shipping companies purchasing pieces of body armor for their crew members, in an effort to provide them with protection against the increased threats that they now face.

Body Armor Designs

Bullet and stab proof vests are generally made to be either covert or overt. A covert bullet proof vest is designed to be worn under clothes, and will often come in light colors They are normally thinner than overt types of bullet proof vests, as they are designed to be invisible when worn under clothes. Overt designs of bullet proof vests are made to be worn over clothes, and are normally produced in dark colors Generally they are made from rugged, hard wearing materials, and will often feature pockets and straps that can be used by the wearer.

It should also be noted that some bullet proof vests can be worn under or over clothes, these are known as covert / overt vests.

The vest carriers of bullet proof vests are designed in a wide range of styles, and are often customized for different uses. For example ambulance staff will have body armor in high visibility covers, and military personnel will have additional neck, groin and arm protection attached to their bullet proof vests. The broad range of covers and accessories available means bullet proof vests can be designed to almost any specification required.

Protection Levels

The protection standards used for body armor will vary from country to country, with many having their own specific tests and standards. However the tests performed by the American NIJ (National Institute of Justice) and the UK HOSDB (Home Office Scientific Development Branch) are considered to be the model standards for body armor around the world, and most countries will recognize the protection levels offered by a piece of body armor that is certified by either of these agencies.

The NIJ are considered to be the industry leaders in ballistic testing methods for body armor, and the HOSDB’s stab and spike tests are thought to be the worlds best. The NIJ and the HOSDB work in conjunction with each other on their testing methods, and a piece of body armor that passes NIJ standards will also pass the equivalent HOSDB standard.

Body armor is designed to protect against 3 broad types of threats – bullet, stab and spike. The protection offered by a piece of body armor will depend on how it is designed. For example some pieces of body armor will provide protection from just ballistic threats, while others will provide protection against bullet and stab attacks, or even bullet, stab and spike based threats.

Each piece of body armor will be clearly labeled with the protection that it provides. The higher the number on the protection, the higher the level of protection it will offer. For example a bullet proof vest that has NIJ Level IIIa protection will provide a higher level of protection than a bullet proof vest with NIJ Level II protection . Please see our protection levels section for more details.

Body Armor Sizing

Body armor comes in a full range of sizes, from small to 5XL. The larger the size, the wider the protective panels of the bullet proof vest will be. Body armor is also designed in different lengths – short, regular and long. A normal piece of body armor is designed to protect only the wearers vital organs, and should reach to the navel area. We recommend that anyone under 5’5 orders a short vest, between 5’6 and 5’11 a regular length vest, and over 6′ a long vest.

Body armor is made in the same way as normal clothing when it comes to sizing. For example a 5’10 man with a 38-40 inch chest and 32-34 inch waist will wear a medium t-shirt, and also a medium, regular length bullet proof vest.

How Does Body Armor Work?

Bullet proof vests

Bullet proof vests are designed to stop a bullet from penetrating them and causing harm to the wearer. They are made up a many layers of incredibly strong fibers, which when hit act as a net that essentially catches the bullet, and prevents it from traveling any further. Each layer twists as the bullet passes through, creating a stronger barrier and slowing the bullet until it comes to a complete stop. This process deforms the bullet, flattening it into a dish shape, and the force of the impact is spread over a large portion of the bullet proof vest.

Obviously the impact of a bullet is massive, and while the bullet proof vest will stop the penetration of the bullet, both the bullet proof vest and the wearer will still absorb the bullets energy. The impact of the bullet may be enough to cause what is known as “blunt force trauma” to the wearer at the impact point. As a bullet proof vest is not solid the bullet will not instantly be stopped by it, it will travel through the vest but not actually penetrate it completely. This means the wearer will still feel the impact of the bullet on their body, and while the blunt force trauma of the bullet will undoubtedly be painful, it should also not be life threatening

Bullet proof vests come in several levels of protection, and are designed to resist most common law and medium energy handgun rounds. If the wearer requires protection against rifle rounds then rigid, hard armor can also be used in conjunction with their bullet proof vest. Hard armor is generally made from ceramics, metal or a combination of both, and are worn in front of the panels on the bullet proof vest. However these plates tend to be heavy and bulky, and so they are generally used only when required in high risk situations.

It is very important to remember that a bullet proof vest is only bullet proof when it contains ballistic panels. A bullet proof vest without ballistic panels is simply a vest, the outer vest cover does not provide any ballistic protection on its own.

The ballistic panels themselves are made in different ways, depending on the individual manufacturer. Some may use a single type of material such as DuPont™ Kevlar®, whilst others may use multiple materials in their construction. The more protection a bullet proof vest offers, the more it will weigh. This is because it will contain more layers of protective material, and some manufacturers will add layers of non-ballistic materials in order to provide additional blunt trauma protection. Because of the different methods of construction used by different manufacturers it is impossible to compare individual ballistic plates, however it is important to note that whilst they may be constructed differently, they all need to pass the same safety checks before they can be sold.

Stab and spike proof vests

A traditional bullet proof vest will provide little to no resistance to an attack from a knife or stabbing instrument, as the fibers that are designed to “catch” the bullet can not disperse the energy of a concentrated stab or spike attack.

Stab and spike proof vests are constructed differently to bullet proof vests, in order to offer resistance to these types of attack. A knife tip will penetrate fabric, which then allows the rest of the cutting surface to rip through the material. A pointed weapon, such as a needle or syringe, will not actually damage the material, rather the point will push through the weave of the fabric and allow the rest of it to follow.

Stab and spike proof vests are made up of materials with a very tight laminated weave, as this prevents threats from piercing the fabric and causing damage. Stab and spike proof vests can be made from tightly woven, heavy duty nylon, however recent trends have led to an increase in multi-threat Kevlar® vests, which offer protection from bullet and stab threats, whilst others offer bullet, stab and spike protection.

It is important to note that not every stab resistant vest will also offer spike protection. If you are going to face spike based threats please ensure you select a vest with additional spike protection.

Body Armor User Guide

What your body armor is NOT

Please be aware that body armor is NOT designed to provide 100% protection against every conceivable threat. Your body armor will provide protection up to its stated levels, so always ensure that you have the correct level of protection for the threats you could face.

Body Armor Maintenance

Cleaning

Body armor should be cleaned straight after wearing using a weak liquid detergent and warm water. Sponge the vest cover, do not immerse the vest in water as this could damage the panels. Do not dry in direct sunlight.

Storage

Body armor should be stored flat when not in use . This will stop creases and wrinkles forming in the ballistic materials.

Washing

Do not wash the Kevlar® inserts, as this could cause damage to the ballistic fibers If required they can be lightly sponged with warm, soapy water. The covers are made from various materials and the washing instructions should be followed.

Damage

Body armor should be visually inspected for damage or excessive wear every time it is worn. Never wear body armor that is damaged in anyway.

Inserting Protective Panels

Bullet, stab and spike proof vests are designed to be worn in a specific direction. It is important that you ensure the ballistic panels within your vest carrier are facing the correct direction at all times. When a bullet strikes a bullet proof vest its impact is absorbed by the many layers of fabric within 3 nanoseconds, caught, and prevented from passing through the vest itself. However this method of stopping a bullet is directional, which means that it works only when the panels are facing in the correct direction. If the panel is facing the wrong way then the web of fibers becomes practically useless, and leaves the wearer open to serious threat.

The same applies to stab and spike proof vests. If the protective panel is facing the wrong way it becomes easier for pointed objects to pass through, as they are not designed to protect against threats from that direction.

All protective panels are clearly marked with the direction they are intended to be worn, and it is important that the wearer ensures they are aware of this at all times. If you remove your vests panels in order to wash the outer carrier then always pay attention when putting the vest back together, and ensure that when the panels are reinserted they are facing the correct direction.

Adjustment

Most bullet proof vests are adjustable at the waist in order to provide the wearer with a well fitted, comfortable vest. Armour should not be worn too tightly as this may increase body heat and restrict movement.

Effects of water and sweat on body armor

The armor we sell is made from aramid fibers and these will lose some of their protective properties if they are totally immersed in water for a long period of time, however this will only be temporary until the armor has dried out. Our body armor will not be affected by rain or sweat.

This article was provided courtesy of SafeGuard ARMOR™. SafeGuard ARMOR™ has been operating for 25 years, selling our body armor to thousands of individuals and companies across the world. Started in 1986, we have grown from a small operation selling bullet proof vests to local companies, to the worldwide leader in body armor. We now manufacture our body armor in the U.S. and Europe, and have multiple distribution points around the world.

SafeGuard ARMOR™ LLC
1925 Timberline Road N19
Fort Collins, CO 80525
(970) 626-6038
info@safeguardarmor.com
http://safeguardarmor.com

Instead of the license distinguishing between stalkers and PIs, the difference seems rather to lie in the intention of the observer.  An observer who is watching someone on behalf of a third party and/or who receives no direct pleasure from the observation, strikes me as being a legitimate surveillant.  By contrast, an observer watching someone for their own ends and who receives direct pleasure from the observation, seems to be a stalker.

So what good does a license serve? The license acts to confer authority on the PI.  Authority can come from various directions.  It can come from above (i.e. a boss promoting you at work), it can come from alongside (i.e. when friends don’t let friends drink and drive), or it can come from below (i.e. when the people elect the President).  In the case of licenses for PIs the authority is coming from above, from the state legislature.

Alright, so the license is a demonstration that license holder has authority conferred upon him or her by the state.  But what does that mean?  It means that the license holder has demonstrated to the state a capacity to make responsible decisions in his line of work.  He has met certain criteria, such as training and an exam, which the state feels are basic requirements to perform the job ethically.  What are these requirements?  Not being a legal expert, and being a Brit, I can only guess that they differ between states in the US (in the UK PIs are unlicensed).  However, I believe they should conform to at least two guidelines.

The first of these is that the applicant should be an appropriate person to hold the license.  They should not be a convicted felon, of unsound mind, or a known stalker!  Anyone who fails to meet these guidelines is not an appropriate person to hold a license, and therefore should not be in possession of one.

The second of these guidelines is that the applicant should demonstrate that they understand the behaviour appropriate of a license holder.  For PIs this would apply to, among other things, how information is handled.  To put it bluntly, a PI who could not keep his mouth shut about the details of his cases would not be acting appropriately.  Similarly, a PI who worked for both parties in a dispute would also be an inappropriate license holder.

The purpose of the license is therefore not to distinguish between a stalker and a private investigator, contrary to the joke shared on the API podcast.  That difference comes from the intention of the observer.  Instead, the license serves to ensure that the person practicing as a private investigator is an appropriate person for the role.

As with all good jokes, though, there is some truth in what Peter Psarouthakis said; a stalker would certainly be an inappropriate person, and therefore should not have a license.  A licensed PI who stalked a victim shouldn’t remain a licensed PI for very long!  However, as I hope I’d shown, the license does more than keep stalkers at bay.  We can see this in states where no license is required (such as the UK), or whether holding of the license is voluntary (i.e. Colorado).  In these cases there seems to be no way to tell whether a person acting as a PI is an appropriate person for the role in the ways I’ve suggested.  And that is a worrying state to be in.

Kevin Macnish is a research student in Philosophy at the University of Leeds, where he is working on an ethics of surveillance.  He responds this way to a lot of jokes.

http://www.linkedin.com/in/kmacnish