Governor Purdue has appointed Patricia Barrow Mincey, 45, to the Georgia Board of Private Detective and Security Agencies. Patricia is a Savannah, Private Detective/ Security Agency Member – owner and lead investigator of Executive Strategies and a contract investigator with US Investigations. She served as a corporate fraud manager for Food Lion Stores, a division of [...]

According to numerous wire releases, it appears that the private investigators implicated in the Hewlett-Packard Co. scandal, will avoid jail time in a no contest plea deal to misdemeanor charges on fraudulent wire communications in California. In a statement issued by the Attorney General’s Office, the court did not accept the plea from investigators, Ronald DeLia, [...]

The Excluded Parties List System is a federal General Services Administration database of private contractors which are banned from receiving federal contracts. Search by individual or company name. Results return address, DUNS, action date and agency. The Project On Government Oversight maintains the Federal Contractors Misconduct Database, a partial index to some misconduct by the [...]

The Orange County California criminal and traffic index is now in a searchable database online. According to the press release, the criminal case “on-line application provides hearing dates, times and locations, and charges in criminal cases. Search for case information can be done by entering the defendant’s name or by case number. Courtroom calendars for [...]

The Federal Trade Commission has settled another telephone pretexting case, Federal Trade Commission, Plaintiff, v. Information Search, Inc. and David J. Kacala, individually and as an officer of Information Search, Inc., Defendants. The FTC will collect $3000 from the telephone information broker, who is also required to abandon the now illegal practice of impersonating telephone [...]

A Wisconsin federal jury concluded that a police officer unlawfully disclosed a woman’s address to her ex husband, a violation of the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act. An exception is made for the service of legal papers, which was a ruse used by the ex husband, who was subject to a restraining order, which the [...]

An initiative on the California ballot that would require police officers “create an audio-visual recording of all contacts with or searches of citizens” is now gathering signatures. If approved by the voters, the measure would mandate that “a copy of the recording be provided to affected citizens who are arrested and charged with a crime.” The [...]

California State Controller John Chiang has directed the Franchise Tax Board to remove Social Security Numbers from state tax liens. Tax liens are filed in county Recorder offices and entered into databases of tax liens and court judgments maintained by data aggregators, among which are Choicepoint, Merlindata and LexisNexis. Current state law prohibits the Franchise [...]

Recently more cities and counties in California have established or improved their online GIS mapping Web sites. Search on the Merced County site for real properties by address or parcel number. The parcel map displays the nearby properties and their addresses. A detailed profile gives property characteristics with valuations. The City of Modesto (view in [...]

The laws of conducting surveillance on insurance claimants can vary by state and even by country. An article appearing in Out-Law.com highlights the potential conflict of British laws that involve government surveillance and verifying the validity of an insurance claim. In August 2002, the UK police instructed a private detective firm to observe a former sergeant [...]

The Shasta County California Sheriff inmates in custody database is now online. This list is only of inmates who are currently in the Shasta County jail. Select a name from the list to get more individual details. Results include a photo, inmate’s date of birth, list of violations, inmate booking number, the arrest date, booking date, [...]

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott issued an opinion that county clerks are required to remove social security numbers from documents before releasing them to the public. The outcry from county clerks, subsequently from legislators, has forced him to put a 60 day hold on enforcement while the legislators review the consequences of this sweeping directive. Administrative [...]

The California Supreme Court has ruled that a county trial court must determine whether a psychologist used subterfuge to obtain an interview with the foster mother of a woman who had claimed as an adult a repressed memory of childhood sexual abuse. Psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, a renowned expert on the fallibility of eye witness evidence and [...]

A faithful reader clued me into the usefulness of restaurant inspection reports for finding names of employees at a business. Search the Sacramento County, California Food Facility Restaurant Inspection Reports database by partial street name or facility name. The reports often identify the owners and employees who signed the inspection report. You may have to do [...]

Let’s get right to it. Congress is attempting to take away the tools of our trade. Private investigators want to stop the fraudsters but it’s counter productive to restrict private investigators, judgment collectors and process servers from accessing social security numbers to locate people and verify identities. Congress has reintroduced legislation that private investigators fought [...]

The Federal Trade Commission has sought a permanent injunction against Action Research Group and Eye In the Sky Investigations for obtaining and selling to third parties confidential customer phone records in violation of the FTC Act prohibiting deceptive acts. Federal Trade Commission, Plaintiff, v. Action Research Group, Inc., Joseph Depante, Matthew Depante, Bryan Wagner, Cassandra Selvage, [...]

The Florida Sexual Offenders and Predators database is now available en Español. The public’s right to access public records supersedes laws relieving government agencies from compiling new records, according to a recent North Dakota Attorney General Opinion. The Department of Transportation denied a request for records by Carfax, although the state public records access law requires [...]

The Texas Department of State Health Services has downloadable files of marriage license application and divorce indexes, organized by year. These are records that are available through other sources, usually for a fee, but if you want to work directly with the data yourself, this is the source. The marriage index covers 1966 through 2005; [...]

The Names Project, which maintains the AIDS Memorial Quilt, has an online searchable database of the names appearing on the quilt panels. View the quilt and search the panels by keywords: personal names, places, organizations or other features.

Madera County, California real property parcel maps can be searched by address and viewed online. The Sacramento County, California probate court is adding online document images to its Web site. Only cases filed after February 5, 2007 are currently included. The recent expansion of the role of Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens’ Aide Office will provide a complaint center for [...]

A Cup of Tea, Coffee, or Something Else www.quiettable.com

Whenever investigating an individual or business, one of the most basic checks is for lawsuits, criminal charges, and bankruptcy filings. But how do you research the court system? Is there one simple site to go to where you pop in a name and are rewarded with a listing of all court filings across the country pertaining to that individual? No such luck ... yet, anyway! To understand court research, you first need to understand a bit about the USA's court system.

There are two major separate court entities in the USA, the State court system and the Federal court system. The Federal court system is divided into three branches, the federal criminal, civil, bankruptcy, and appeals courts. These courts are not 'single entities' -- there are a number of federal courts scattered across the United States, each covering a certain geographic district within a 'circuit'. For a map of the circuits, see www.uscourts.gov/images/CircuitMap.pdf.

For example, there is a Northern Mississippi district court, as well as a Southern. Cases are prosecuted by US Attorneys, who are elected, or Assistant US Attorneys, who are government employees. Regarding federal law, federal statutes are divided into sections called Titles. Title 11, for example, deals with bankcruptcy, and under that Title you will find Chapters, such as Chapter 7 regarding liquidation of a business. All personal and business bankruptcies fall under federal statutes and are dealt with in federal court, and bankruptcies make up nearly 70% of all federal court cases. This makes researching whether an individual has a history of bankcruptcy a considerably simpler matter, since only the relevant federal court needs to be searched.

Title 18 contains the majority of the criminal statutes for the federal criminal court. Note that in many cases it can be decided for an individual to be tried in the federal rather than State court system, under federal-question jurisdiction rules, for a variety of reasons. For example, in a recent case where two teens burned a cross in a black family's yard, it was decided to prosecute them in federal rather than State court -- the penalties that could be imposed by the federal court system were greater. Likewise, cases involving citizens from different States will be tried in Federal courts if the monetary amount involved in the case is greater than $75,000. There are a number of other types of cases that are likewise defaulted to federal court, including cases involving patents or copyrights, cases challenging State laws (usually for Constitutional reasons), and cases involving federal agencies.

The State court system is somewhat more complex in its terminology, since this terminology differs from State to State, but in the end the terminology resolves into a system of 'upper' and 'lower' courts in civil and criminal matters. The State civil court was an 'upper' and 'lower' court, as does the State criminal court. In some States, these are referred to as the 'supreme' and 'county' courts, or the 'superior' and 'justice' courts.

The upper courts tend to deal with more important subjects, or crimes with stiffer penalties (such as armed robbery, cases of gross malpractice, and often divorce). Lower courts will deal with misdemeanor crimes and small money claims (ie, small claims court). In criminal cases of all sorts, the prosecutor is usually the United States government (from the State's attorney office), and the case will be lised as The State of Wherever V. Lastname.

Upper and lower courts are relatively simple to understand -- big money cases or cases involving serious crimes go the upper, and everything of lesser importance to the lower, but don't forget that most divorces are tried in the upper court! Unfortunately, the State court system doesn't stop there, but also includes, depending on the State, a variety of other courts such as the municipal court or traffic court, which handle matters specific to their speciality (ie, argue traffic tickets in traffic court). There are also appellate courts, for dealing with appeals.

So, now that we understand the court system a bit better, how do we go about finding court records? For Federal courts, this is a relatively simple matter: The majority of records are accessible through a system called PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records). PACER allows searching different courts by a variety of fields, including name. You as a citizen can sign up for PACER with a credit card at http://pacer.psc.uscourts.gov/ -- the service isn't free, but only charges a few dollars for good documentation on most cases. Note that some districts still aren't in the PACER system (for example, the Alaska district court) -- in this case, you can always pay a visit to the nearest district federal courthouse.

Every district has one, and the records should be open to the public for free. Feel free to drive there and peruse! If the district court is further than you want to travel, there are courthouse researchers across the country who make a living looking up court records for those to far away from the court to visit in person.

State records are somewhat more complex. To access these records over the Internet, not only should the State records be online, but also the individual county in question. Most State higher court and appellate courts are online with free searching, but many lower (county) courts are not, only offer some records, or charge high fees. Of course, if you're only interested in researching cases in your area, all you need to do is drive to your local county courthouse, where the records are, by Federal law, public access. Your county courthouse should not charge you a fee to access these records, they should be free to peruse.

Charging a fee online is for 'electronic access', not for seeing the actual documents themselves. Once again, if the county is outside your area you can hire a courtresearcher to do the job for you. To find county court researches and county/State courts on the Internet, simply do a search engine search for 'Countyname county court', and follow the links from there.

About The Author

Matthew Abts is an x-military private investigator specializing in background investigations and judicial claims processing.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Matthew_Abts

We all want to know what scoop "Big Brother" has on us in their databases. Especially the FBI. Here's how you can get your own FBI file.

First a clarification: The FBI maintains the NCIC database. It does NOT keep a file on every American. The NCIC contains data on every person convicted of a crime, wanted persons, persons deemed dangerous to law enforcement, all drivers and more. The FBI shares this information with all law enforcement agencies. This is the database police query when they stop your car and "call in" your license plate and drivers license. The database does not record that you have been stopped, although in most provinces in Canada there is a system where all stops and contacts are recorded. Many local law enforcement departments have "local contact" database but they are not shared. So if you get stopped in your own town - there's a chance there is a local record of this stop. But not on the NCIC database.

The FBI also maintains it's internal databases - and that information might contain data on non-convicted persons. This database is an investigative file, containing information on any person of interest to the FBI. It also contains all the internal records on FBI investigations. This file is NOT available to the public under any circumstance. One example of this is the FBI Counterterrorism database. This database contains over 659 million records from the FBI and other government sources.

An FBI Identification Record, often referred to as a Criminal History Record or Rap Sheet, is a listing of certain information taken from fingerprint submissions retained by the FBI in connection with arrests and, in some instances, federal employment, naturalization, or military service.

If you have been convicted of a crime or wanted by the police you will have a record in this file. You can get a copy of your own file by following precise instructions. These can be found here: http://www.fbibackgroundchecks.com/get-your-own-FBI-record.html. The cost is $18 payable to the FBI. The request must be made directly to the FBI. There is no need to use a company or lawyer to do this.

Can you get a FREE NCIC background check? Yes, most non-profit volunteer-based organizations might get a FBI background check performed at the local police agency.

We are all familiar with the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA). We can get to any database, right? Not really. The government will censor what they deem confidential. I have tried to get several files using FOIA and the government will respond but slowly. And many records will have black marker streaks covering what they deemed confidential. In one case I know there was a record - but the response was "no record found". In a perfect world we should be able to see what is in these databases, but in today's world this is not so easy. More information on the FBI NCIC database and background checks here:
http://www.fbibackgroundchecks.com

For information on Financial Fraud:
http://www.FinancialFraud.INFO

About the Author:

Ingvar Grimsmo is a writer and webmaster on a variety of current topics.
http://www.financingforsmallbusiness.com

Do you need to locate someone and all you have is a phone number? Did you know that it is possible to take advantage of many online tools, some of them free, in order to do a reverse phone number search and find the name and address of the person that you are looking for.

The first thing you need to do is to determine whether or not the phone number of the person is a landline or a cell phone number. Fonefinder.net is a free tool that allows you to quickly find this out.

The next step is to use Google. One of the best sources to do a free reverse look-up for landline numbers is the Google search engine. If you type in the phone number in the format (XXX) XXX-XXXX, the name and address of the owner will often come up in the search engine results. This is often all that is necessary to find the information that you are looking for but if this does not produce a result then there are other tools to consider.

Some of these services are available for free. Here are a few to consider:

Anywho.
http://www.anywho.com/rl.html

This site also allows you to type in a phone number for
free and search for a matching name and address.

PhoneNumber.com
http://www.phonenumber.com/reverse_phone.xhtml

SmartPages.com
http://www.smartpages.com/whitepages/?wppage=reverse-phone

Whitepages.com
http://www.whitepages.com/1129/reverse-phone

Reverse Phone Directory.
http://www.reversephonedirectory.com/

This site allows you to search one phone number in several different online directories, including "White Pages," "Phone Number," and "InfoSpace."

Please bear in mind that the information is only available of the name of the person to whom the phone number is registered. Also none of these sites provide information for cell phone numbers or unlisted numbers.

Okay, so how then do we go about locating the owner of an unlisted number? And what about cell phones - is it possible to find out who a particular cell phone number belongs to? Reverse cell phone lookup has always been more difficult than reversing landline numbers.

Well you could consider one of the many commercial "private detective services" that will help locate someone for you. Prices vary but typically you could pay $85 or more for this type of service. Usually the company will offer a refund if they cannot obtain the information for you.

There is one another option and that is to become your own private detective! The key here is to learn how to access the various online databases that are used by private investigators, law firms, police departments, businesses and individuals all around the world. Examples of some of these online databases include State and County public records, Court records, credit reports and so on. These records will often yield the information that you are looking for

Irene Graham writes for http://www.Ist-Web-Detective.com where you can learn more about how to reverse look up cell phone numbers.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Irene_Graham

Bankruptcy records are a result of an individual or company filing for bankruptcy. This means that the individual or company has recognized that the income they are earning is not enough to meet their financial obligations.

There are two kinds of bankruptcy in the United States. The first is liquidation, where all your assets are sold off, and the second is reorganization, where you file for a new payment plan to address your financial obligations. Filing for bankruptcy means that you are admitting that you can no longer turn your losses into profits and as a consequence, you need to be freed from further payment of debts.

Bankruptcy Records are Public Records

If you think that filing for bankruptcy only means being absolved of debt, then you should be aware that bankruptcy records are created in your name or your company's name for public access. Bankruptcy records could deter future partners or companies from ever engaging in business with you again because of your poor financial history. On the other hand, it may also demonstrate how you were able to rise above adversity.

If you know where to look, obtaining bankruptcy records should not be too difficult because these are considered public records. You can actually call the Bankruptcy Court in the vicinity where the bankruptcy was filed and conduct a search based either on the case number of the bankruptcy, the name of the person or company who filed it or the social security number or tax identification number of the involved parties. Finding the case number will enable you to request for a copy of the entire bankruptcy file for your perusal.

The United States Courts has an administrative office with an official website that allows you to look up bankruptcy records. Although some of the personal information found in bankruptcy records will be withheld, the new cases in the bankruptcy courts are shown on a daily basis on this website. For purposes of safety and protection, bankruptcy records that are used in criminal cases will not be displayed on this website.

Apart from government sites, there are plenty of private companies online who can assist you in locating bankruptcy records. Apart from the convenience they offer you, most records can be in your hands in as short as a couple of hours from the time you file online.

Why You Should Access Bankruptcy Records

If you are thinking of joining someone in business, then it is important that you check on your future partners' financial records.

Bankruptcy records serve as an excellent source of research either for business students and entrepreneurs. You can read extensively about public bankruptcies to learn about what others have done wrong and how you can avoid making the same mistakes in your own business endeavors.

If you are deeply mired in debts yourself, bankruptcy records can help you determine the next course of action to take on your own

Want to Know the Top Sites to Find Bankruptcy Records? Read Dr. Amit Mehta's Unbiased Reviews ==> RecordsSiteReviews.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Amit_Mehta

Lately I've been getting frequent calls from women who aren't sure if their boyfriends are actually single. Believe it or not, they have been dating these men for over a year and still don't know.

Here are a few tips to help you determine whether or not your boyfriend is married or single.

1. If they won't tell you where they live - they are married!
2. If they only see you on weekdays - they are married!
3. If they do not introduce you to any of their friends - they are married!
4. If they don't answer their cell phone while they are with you - they are either married or have another girlfriend!
5. If they go out of town a lot and don't tell you anything or they are defensive - they have someone else!

I don't understand why some women know deep down that their boyfriends are either married or have someone else, but still won't admit their boyfriends are not monogamous.

Some states, like California, have confidential marriages where the record of marriage is not public. However, there are some counties that have online records, but not all marriages are listed. Anyone who gets married in Las Vegas has a record of their marriage on the Clark County Nevada Website. Here is a list of all the states and counties in the US that have online marriage records- Online marriage records.

Remember, if you really aren't sure if your boyfriend is already married, then ask him. If he beats around the bush or is defensive, do yourself a favor and get another boyfriend.

Good luck.

Jay Rosenzweig
CaliPI.com

Which Search Tool Should You Choose? * If you're looking for specific information use search engines. * If you're looking for a unique or obscure search term or if you want to make an in-depth analysis of what's out there on a specific subject, then use meta search engines. * If you're looking for general information on popular topics, use subject (web) directories. * If you're looking for scholarly information use virtual libraries. * If you're looking for real-time information or for dynamically changing content such as the latest news, phone book listings, available airline flights, etc., then use specialized databases (invisible or deep web.) There are thousands of search engines, hundreds of meta search engines and dozens of web directories and specialized databases. Choosing the right search tool - from the start - can make the difference between a successful search and a frustrating experience. Before Starting the Search The easiest way to find information is when you know a web page Internet address or URL (Uniform Resource Locator) such as Fortune Magazine at http://www.fortune.com. You can find these addresses on business cards, TV commercials or newspapers. Simply type the URL in the browser's address box and hit the (PC) or (Mac) key. Be aware that in most browsers, you do not have to type "http://" or even "www" before the domain name. You can access a site simply typing the domain name such as "sony.com." Special note: Be careful when you copy and paste a long URL from an email message or from some web sites. URLs that span two lines have a gap (space) between the last character of the first line and the first character on the second line. First, get rid of the gap and then paste it in the browser's address line. Other times you may not know the URL but... you can guess it. Often companies will use their name, acronym or abbreviated name followed by ".com", such as ibm.com or apple.com. The same thing is true for educational institutions (add the ".edu" suffix) or government sites (add ".gov") So, whenever you don't know an URL, you can try to guess it. If you do not know the URL, you'll have to find it by searching the Internet. In many cases, a simple search on the name of an organization within most search engines will return a direct hit on their web site. Tips For Searching Smarter: * Read the search engine's "search tips" or "help" page before using a search tool. Strangely enough, most of the time you'll find the "search tips" link on the "Advanced Search" page or on the "results page." Anyway, regularly check the search tips page because the rules often change. * Customize the output of the results. Use the search engine's "preferences" page. Some search tools allow you to select the value for: * the total results per page; usually 10 by default (select * the maximum - often 100) * the search tool's timeout - select the maximum * the search depth - select maximum. Be sure to save the new "settings" or "search preferences" for the next time you use the search tools. Also, set the browser you use to accept cookies. Tips To Make Your Search Faster: If you're searching for information and you are not interested in graphics on the pages you see, turn off or disable graphics. You can also turn off sounds, animation, Java, JavaScript, etc. See your browser documentation for instructions. If you decide to keep the graphics, in the case of a "heavy" page, you can always press the button in the browser, immediately after you see the text and before the graphics are entirely loaded. More Tips: * Most search tools are case-insensitive which means that you can construct a query - your search request - by typing all the words - even proper names - in lower case text. * If you type a long query, most of the search tools' search boxes are not very wide so you cannot see the entire query. Write the query in a word processor and then "copy and paste" into the search box. Be aware that Google™ only allows 10 words in the search box. * Some search tools offer an option called "similar pages" (Google) or "related pages" (AltaVista and Teoma.) Clicking on that option will show you relevant results for the page you're interested in. * Some search engines have a function called "see more hits/results/pages from the same domain." Sometimes it can be useful. * Also, some search tools, such as Google, allow you to see an English translation for a results page that is written in a foreign language. If you want to translate a web page and you have the URL, you can also use: * Systran [ http://www.systransoft.com/ ] * Fagan Finder [ http://www.faganfinder.com ranslate/ ] or * alphaWorks (IBM) [ http://www.alphaworks.ibm.com/aw.nsf/html/mt ] Remember, don't expect perfect translations because that seldom happens. * Looking for pages in a specific language? Some search engines (Google, AlltheWeb, etc.) have an advanced search page that allows you to select the language from the pull-down menu. * If your search terms contain letters not present in the English alphabet such as "é" or "ü" (example fiancé or München), use Fagan Finder's (Search Engine Ultimate Interface) which allows you to use these special letters in many major search engines. It makes a big difference. A search for Munchen in Google gives 570,000 results while for München - "u" with umlaut - gives 51,700,000 - almost 10 times more. So, let's start searching! Most of the search tools can be searched using keywords. Web directories and the invisible web databases can also be searched by browsing categories and subcategories. Start with a popular search engine such as Google, for example. Before typing the keywords, take your time and brainstorm relevant words. Create a list of search terms. Write them down. A few seconds of brainstorming could save you minutes or hours of retrieving irrelevant results. Advice for Searching Better: * Select the most descriptive words. Brainstorm thoroughly. * Use at least two keywords. * Place the most important words or phrases first.

* Whenever two or more words can appear in exact order, enclose the words with double quotation marks ("word 1 word 2".) Example: "United States." If you use a longer phrase, you will achieve more precise results. With a very long phrase, however, you may get zero results. Some search engines allow you to select the "phrase" option in the pull-down menu on their advanced search page or you can type it in special phrase search box, so you don't have to use quotes. * When possible, use unique, rare or unusual keywords. The more uncommon / obscure or less frequent the keywords you use are, the fewer and more relevant results you will get. * Use nouns and objects as keywords. Do not use the so-called "stop words" such as "what," "where," "the," "in," "and," etc. Many search tools ignore them. If you need a stop word to appear in the results, place the implied Boolean operator "+ " in front of that word. The standard Boolean operators AND, OR, NOT (or AND NOT), NEAR, BEFORE, AFTER and the Boolean logic "(parenthesis)", are used to construct complicated queries. The implied Boolean operators "+" and "-" can replace the AND and NOT respectively. An example of Boolean logic is (tips OR tricks) AND ("search engines" OR "web directories"). It will find tips or tricks for search engines or web directories. Check the search tool's tips to see if they accept Boolean operators. For example Google™ does not support full Boolean logic. * Do not use common terms such as Internet, Web, etc. except for cases that it is necessary. (For example, the query is "searching the web" with quotes.) * Avoid redundant terms and complicated query structures. * Choosing the right words for your query is the most important part of web searching. The more specific the search term, the more relevant your results will be and the more likely it is that you will find what you seek. Remember, work smarter not harder. * The secret to constructing a professional query is to type words you expect to find in the matches. Note: Some search tools, such as Ask Jeeves allow you to use the so-called "natural language." This means that you can construct a query as a question in plain English, such as "What's the weather in LA?" When you have a specific question in mind, these tools can be helpful.

Please see Part III.

About the Author
Daniel Bazac is the Search Engine Marketer for Web Design in New York [ http://www.web-design-in-new-york.com ], a site design, search engine optimization and promotion company. He also maintains Bazac Weblog [ http://www.bazac.blogspot.com/ ] a blog about the search engines and search engine marketing news and articles. He can be reached at mailto:danielbazac@hotmail.com .

There was an article in the Los Angeles Times Today on Anthony Pellicano. He gave his first interview in 3 years last week. Here is a quote I'd like to comment on from the article:

"This case boils down to two things - and only two. It's not a complex issue," he said. "Did I get information? Did I have contacts in the phone company? Did I have contacts in law enforcement? You understand? I don't know a private investigator in the world that doesn't - and if he doesn't, he's not going to do a hell of a lot of business."
Full Article from L.A. Times

First of all, I do not personally know any licensed private investigators here in California, including myself, that have contacts with the phone company or contacts with law enforcement. As far as not doing "a hell of a lot of business" as Pellicano stated, that's totally false. Why does a PI have to be unlawful to be successful? That's what Pellicano is basically saying. The type of PI work that my colleagues and myself conduct is no where near the type of "so called" PI work that Pellicano conducted. We are not struggling to support our families.

We do not threaten people for debts owed. We do not "bug offices" or tap phone lines. The Pellicano type investigator is not your modern day PI. The PI today likes to be called "a licensed professional investigator." The key word here is professional. I would think that all licensed PI's consider themselves "professionals" and would not do anything to jeopardize their license or cause harm to a client or adverse party.

Pellicano has given professional investigators a bad name. I hope the general public and our legislators do not think that PI's are thugs and unethical just because of one "bad apple."

Let's hope there are no more Pellicano's out there and professional investigators can have more positive press in the future.

J R
CaliPI.com

I thought I would post this on Valentines Day because this is the time of year I receive many requests to find "lost loves" or childhood sweethearts.

First, here is my disclaimer: I will not locate anyone unless there is a legimate purpose. Married people (and I get a lot of them ) should have no reason to find their high school boyfriend/girlfriend.

Okay, with that out of the way, let me tell you that the best FREE people finder site is Zabasearch. You can find the link at FreePrf.com's people finder page along with all the other free people finder links. Zaba publishes all of the listed addresses for an indivual for at least the past 10 years.

To be honest, as a private investigator, I rarely find updated addresses using Zaba or any other free search. For the general public, I suggest Intelius. For under $30, they will provide you with the most recent updated address of an individual.

The absolute best site to obtain adrress information and background information is Merlin Information Services. However, Merlin will only sell their data to companies such as private investigation firms, government agencies, collection agencies, large corporations, law firms, insurance companies, repossessors, process servers or any other business with a legitimate purpose under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act.

If you do not qualilfy to have an account with Merlin, then I suggest you contact a private investigator. My firm charges a flat fee of $250 to locate a person (higher for missing persons). Many times I receive calls from people who spend more than that using several online services and they come up empty.

All in all, I suggest you follow the above steps and if you strike out, contact me.

Thanks

J R
Calipi.com

By Matthew Keegan

Background checks are utilized by companies today to decide whether or not you will be permitted to work for them. Information in these reports can reveal many things about you to a prospective employer; it is critical that you be aware of what a company may uncover via a background check before one is conducted. You need to be aware of what steps you must take to protect yourself should negative information about you be uncovered.

Background checks [or reports] can range from a corroborating an applicant's Social Security number to a detailed description of the prospective employee's history and friends. There are several bits of information that might be included in a background check. Please note that many of these sources are created by governmental agencies and are, in fact, public records:

Bankruptcy Character references Court records Credit records Criminal records Driving records Drug test records Education records Incarceration records Medical records Military records Neighbor interviews Past employers Personal references Property ownership Sex offender lists Social Security No. State licensing records Vehicle registration Workers' compensation

The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) sets national standards for employment screening. This law, however, only applies to background checks performed by an outside company, called a "consumer reporting agency" under the FCRA. The law does not apply in situations where the employer conducts background checks internally.1

Depending on in which state you reside you may have stronger laws than what the federal government mandates. One example can be found in California with their Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (Civil Code Sections 1786 - 1786.6) and the California Consumer Credit Reporting Agency Act (Civil Code §1785). Your state may have similar fair employment guidelines and labor codes in place that can put a limit on the content of an employment background check. Google a search for "consumer reporting agencies" and "your state's name" to find out this information.

Under the FCRA, a background check report is called a "consumer report." This is the same "official" name given to your credit report, and the same limits on disclosure apply. The FCRA says the following cannot be reported:2

* Cases under title 11 [United States Code] or under the Bankruptcy Act that, from the date of entry of the order for relief or the date of adjudication, as the case may be, antedate the report by more than 10 years.

* Civil suits, civil judgments, and records of arrest that from date of entry, antedate the report by more than seven years or until the governing statute of limitations has expired, whichever is the longer period.

* Paid tax liens which, from date of payment, antedate the report by more than seven years.

* Accounts placed for collection or charged to profit and loss which antedate the report by more than seven years.

* Any other adverse item of information, other than records of convictions of crimes which antedates the report by more than seven years.

You have every right to know before a background check is being performed that one will be done. Under the FCRA, the employer must obtain the applicant's written authorization before the background check is conducted. The authorization must be on a document separate from all other documents such as an employment application.

The company may not perform its own credit report, rather the report must be prepared by an outside company [such as those listed on the right side of this page]. The term "consumer reporting agency" means any person which, for monetary fees, dues, or on a cooperative nonprofit basis, regularly engages in whole or in part in the practice of assembling or evaluating consumer credit information or other information on consumers for the purpose of furnishing consumer reports to third parties, and which uses any means or facility of interstate commerce for the purpose of preparing or furnishing consumer reports. (FCRA §603f)3

If you believe that the information obtained by the company was incorrect you need to inform your potential employer immediately. Request copies of all documentation and make sure that any incorrect information is expunged from your account. Will any of this effect whether you are hired or not? I cannot give you a clear yes/no answer. Much depends on the content of the report, how it is interpreted, and whether or not the information contained therein can be construed as damaging to you.

Sources:

1 Privacy Rights Clearing House

2 Federal Trade Commission; FCRA Paragraph 605

3 Federal Trade Commission; FCRA Paragraph 603

Matt is a writer, web designer, and internet marketing expert who resides in North Carolina, USA. His main website, the Corporate Flight Attendant Community, helps people enter the lucrative field of business aviation by providing job leads and tips, interview suggestions, helpful articles and links, and a thriving message board community. You can view his site at http://www.corporateflyer.net and his message board at http://www.cabinmanagers.com

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