Thomas Ruskin, Retired NYPD Detective – Investigator and President of CMP Protective & Investigative Group, discusses on BBC Radio why overseas police departments are adopting NYPD practices.
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FAQs – Private Investigation
I saw background checks available online for $40.00 – $60.00. Why should I hire an Private Investigative firm to do a background check if I can do it myself? Great question. Although we live in a digital age, there is … Continue reading
Is someone following me? When private investigators are hired for counter surveillance
At the CMP Group we perform all sorts of surveillance. In past blog posts we have talked about the different types of surveillance an investigative firm are commonly asked to perform; cheating spouse, personal injury and child custody.
There’s another type of surveillance too, counter surveillance.
Counter surveillance is when a client hires an investigative firm to make sure that no one is following them (i.e. another investigative firm, stalker, disgruntled employee, corporate espionage agents, ex-lovers).
How is counter surveillance done?
In short we would follow you and identify vehicles and individuals who seem to be following you. Once we identify the person(s) that are following you, we would attempt to identify them if you are unsure who they are.
Keep in mind someone may not just be following you on the street but also via your technology via spyware that can be installed on computers, tablets and phones). To combat this, counter surveillance may include:
What do I do with that information?
If you know that person (ex, stalker, disgruntled employee, etc.) and are fearful of them, counter surveillance may offer proof that they are stalking you which will facilitate action by your local authorities, such as a restraining order.
Using a private investigation in personal injury cases
Investigators are finders of the facts whose mission is to obtain information and evidence. That information may be used to bolster your case in a court of law or as intelligence to help you make informed decisions. Learning the facts involved in a personal injury cases, whether it’s an auto accident, slip and fall, physical attack, product liability, nursing home abuse or construction accident.
Personal injury cases can be life changing events for both the plaintiff and the defendant. In either case it may be wise to have your lawyer work with an investigator. Before we begin about the investigation let’s discuss a run-down of types of awarded damages.
There are two types of damages in Personal Injury cases, compensatory and punitive. Compensatory damages are intended to compensate the injured plaintiff for what was lost due to an injury or accident. The idea is to make the plaintiff “whole” again from a monetary standpoint. Usually compensation will fall into these categories.
Medical Treatment – Reimbursement for treatment due to the injury.
Income – Reimbursement if your ability to work at the time of the injury and perhaps going forward.
Property Loss – If any property was damaged as a result of the accident
Pain and Suffering – Discomfort that was suffered during and after the accident.
Emotional Distress – Psychological impact of an injury – fear, anxiety and loss of sleep.
Loss of Enjoyment – Injuries that keep you from enjoying day to day hobbies, exercise and recreational activities.
Loss of Consortium – Injuries that impact the plaintiff’s spousal relationship (inability to maintain a sexual relationship),
Plaintiffs received punitive damages 30% of the time. The median punitive damage award was $64,000.00 and 13% of cases with punitive awards had damages of $1 million or more.
Punitive Damages are awarded if the defendant’s conduct is deemed particularly careless or negligent and are intended to “punish” the defendant for their conduct. Usually punitive damages are awarded in addition to compensatory damages.
So how can a Private Investigator help with my investigation?
Whether your are the plaintiff or the defendant having a personal detective (preferably one with law enforcement experience) may be able to make or break a case.
Accident Reconstruction: Forensic accident reconstruction (car accident, hit and run, boating, bicycles, motor cycles. etc.) presents a visual to better understand the events, speeds or movements leading up to the accident.
Interviews: Canvassing the area of the accident, speaking to witnesses, obtaining any surveillance footage from local businesses that may show the accident.
Surveillance: In cases where you were the defendant and sued for damages but you were suspicious that the plaintiff may be an actor, surveillance may help prove your defense. Wouldn’t it be beneficial to have surveillance footage showing an “injured” plaintiff participating in an active recreation, perhaps soccer on the weekend with their friends?
Background Check: Showing a history of either the defendant or plaintiff’s legal activities may show a history of reckless driving, multiple law suits (in the business we call them sue-happy) or other unknowns.
Ryan Kelly Chamberlain – Social Media Aids Nationwide Man Hunt
As we learned after the Boston Marathon Bombing, social media was a very helpful outlet for law enforcement in their ability getting pictures, descriptions and other helpful information to and from the public.
In previous posts (like my blog series – Giving Your #Selfie Away) the social media landscape is changing how we search for people, not in terms of friends and family, but for people that are wanted for criminal acts nationwide – such as Ryan Kelly Chamberlain
While many details are still unknown regarding the current nationwide manhunt for Ryan Kelly Chamberlain (San Francisco, CA.), it was reported that his apartment contained explosives and the materials to build them. Chamberlain is considered armed and dangerous and should not be approached.
According to public information, Chamberlain (42 years old) is wanted on suspicion of possessing explosives. On Saturday, multiple agencies, including hazardous materials crews, FBI and local police searched Chamberlain’s apartment while he was not home. After the search the found explosive materials were found and sent to an FBI lab for testing.
The affidavit and search warrant used to enter Chamberlain’s home currently remain sealed.
He was last seen on Sunday driving a white 2008 Nissan Altima with Texas or California license plate numbers 7FQY085 or BX9M042.
If these events are local, in this case the San Francisco area, if your smartphone is enabled (here’s how on an iPhone) people can receive alerts directly to their phone about emergencies and amber alerts.
Also by hash tagging (adding a “#” in front of a word on social media outlets) it can be searched. Just by searching #RyanChamberlain, I was able to see many private citizens releasing information to their respective circles, who in turn share that information or post with their circles, thus reaching a much larger and more meaningful audience than the local news station. Even this blog becomes another avenue.
Chamberlain is considered armed and dangerous. If you have any information on him or his whereabouts – no piece of information is too small – please call the police at 415-553-7400 or 911.
How to locate lost family and friends – Steps to take before hiring a Private Investigator
How to locate lost family and friends.
There are endless circumstances that can separate people. Adoption, family strife, travel, moving, death, marriage and sheer time-lapse are some of the more common reasons.
Whatever the reason is, sometimes, seemingly out of nowhere, you find yourself wondering about that relative. Are they doing well, where are they living, are they even alive? The urge to find them or find answers pulls at you, but the search to find them seems so overwhelming. Where can you start?
It can be utterly crushing and very difficult to try and search for this person alone or on the internet. A lot of “leads” to their whereabouts may be old news or completely inaccurate. It’s very easy to get disheartened by your search. Just when you think you found a current address or a phone number, you find out that they have moved years ago or maybe the number is disconnected. Maybe the person you seek is trying not to be found for whatever reason.
At the CMP Protective and Investigative Group we routinely conduct investigative searches for long lost friends and family members. Here are a few things to be aware of before starting this process.
NAME GAME
Knowing a person’s name is important. You are probably thinking to yourself I know their name. I have news for you, names can and do change. The name you knew, may not have been their legal name.
Example: Jim Smith may have been what you knew, but his legal name may be James Smith, Jameson Smith, Billy-James Smith (the combinations are endless) and Jim may be an abbreviated version. People also switch their first and middle names, Walter Jim Smith, Walter James Smith, Walter Jameson Smith…etc.
Already, you can see that this can be a laborious process. People also change their names through marriage (or multiple marriages), a sex change or just out of sheer desire of not being found.
How do we overcome this – by having as much information as possible before beginning. No piece of information is irrelevant. Usually we can search a person using their name, date of birth or approximate age, places lived or a social security number. By linking pieces of information together we are able to sort through viable leads.
Here are three ways YOU can find someone that you are looking for or learn more information that may be turned over to a private investigator to finish what you’ve started.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Currently, there are 1.28 billion (yes billion) people with Facebook accounts out of the approximate 7 billion people on the planet. That’s a great number! By finding other family and friends who knew your missing loved, one more piece of information can be gathered to better locate the missing person. Once again, even if they are on social media, they may go by another name that what you knew.
STATE RECORDS
Certain occupations require state issued licenses (nurses, private investigators, architects, accountants – to name a few) in order to practice. If you knew, that at one time, your missing person worked in licensed practitioner, it may offer another avenue of locating them.
FEDERAL RECORDS
If you’re loved one was once a pilot or in the military we may be able to locate them through federal records. This is not the best choice, because of how time consuming and tedious it can be. Using the Freedom of Information Act it’s possible to request military records, even if you are next of kin.
INTERVIEWS
Contact people who may have knew them (i.e. family members, friends, employers, neighbors, etc.). Even if you cannot put together all the pieces yet, it’s still helpful to have them.
PRIVATE INVESTIGATION
If you have run into dead end after dead end, let a professional private investigative firm handle your investigation. Supply the firm with all the information you have obtained.
A professional firm should have employees that are former law enforcement with decades of experience at their disposal. Investigators not only have access to proprietary data bases, but will physically pull records that you may not be able to obtain yourself.
Elliot Rodger – The Tell-Tale Signs That We Keep Missing
Last Friday night, leading into the last weekend of the Spring Semester at Santa Barbara City College in Santa Barbara, California is usually a time of relief from finals and making the most of the last weekend of the college experience before the summer begins. That was not to be the case this Friday!
For the mentally ill 22 year-old Elliot Rodger, who was obsessed with his lack of a sex life and companionship, this Friday marked his “Day of Retribution”. It claimed the innocent lives of 6 people and injured 13.
Looking back there are always “tell-tale” signs, that emerge after the fact. This is normally in hidden manifestos, blogs, postings, journals, friends, classmates, family or people in their inner circle. In this case, Elliot Rodger had several warning signs that were reported and even followed up by police officials, only to be discounted to a young man that “seemed polite”. Meanwhile he had already devised his deadly plan and amassed legally obtained weapons and ammunition.
In his 137 page manifesto he recalls the moment where “about seven police officers” knocked on his door on April 30th. The police call was prompted when his mother discovered his disturbing YouTube vlogs (video blogs) discussing his hatred of women, the men they “give sex to” and his longing to seek revenge with violence against humanity. She called his therapist (he had more than one) who then called a police hotline and mentioned the videos.
This is when the system seems to fail the victims of Friday’s rampage. As a former NYPD Detective – Investigator, I see flaws in the police protocol and the following investigative steps taken by the police investigators. The police visited Rodger, but had never watched the videos which prompted the report in the first place. Using his charm, he convinced the police that it was all a “misunderstanding”. It appears now evident that had one of the police investigators watched the videos that had been reported to them in the original call, they would have been better prepared to question this troubled man. They also would have been less likely to believe that it was a “misunderstanding or miscommunication”. It may have led to Rodger’s mental evaluation.
In his manifesto he admits that if police would have searched the apartment – or perhaps asked Rodgers if he owns any weapons – his plan would have been over.
“I had the striking and devastating fear that someone had somehow discovered what I was planning to do, and reported me for it,” he wrote. “If that was the case, the police would have searched my room, found all of my guns and weapons, along with my writings.”
It was also revealed that Santa Barbara police had three bizarre encounters with Rodger in just the last 1½ years. In January 2013, he made a citizen’s arrest of his roommate for allegedly stealing three candles (it’s unclear if this was one of the roommates he stabbed), in July when Rodger claimed he was assaulted, though police believe he may have been the aggressor (no charges were filed). In April 2014, police investigators interviewed him regarding his therapist’s telephone complaint that his mother had found disturbing YouTube videos talking about his extreme hatred of women.
On Friday his parents and 25 other people received the 137 page manifesto quoted above. After only reading a few lines, she went to her son’s YouTube pages and saw a newly posted video titled “Elliot Rodger’s Retribution”.
Deeply disturbed by what she saw, his mother called 911. Both parents raced over to Santa Barbara to see their son but it was too late. As the two parents were driving to Santa Barbara they heard the news.
Elliot Rodger was diagnosed as a highly functioning individual with autism, as was the Sandy Hook shooter, Adam Lanza. Both were able to legally obtain guns.
Police should also have investigated Rodger’s weapons permits and the guns he possessed. This would have been done routinely by the NYPD.
There were too many signs, documented signs, that shows us that policies and procedures have to be evaluated nationwide to try and insure these type of tragic events stop happening and that sick individuals like Rodger are discovered and hospitalized or monitored in advance of a mass shooting.
Ways to Improve US Intelligence Networks
1. Devise a tickler system – an alert that reminds an agency to follow up with individuals who have exhibited terroristic traits. We can’t let these people “fall through the cracks”.
2. Draw inspiration from other industires. If google can devise an alert, than the FBI should be able to create an alert system.
3. We have to build an intelligence system that coordinates between the different agencies.
4. Our agencies need to start talking to eachother.
5. We have to keep our intelligence programs on a “need to know” basis.
6. Not everything should be made public.
7. When the joint terrorist task force works together, attacks can be stopped before happening.
Private Investigation for Child Custody and/or Child Support
Divorce is hard for adults, even more-so for the kids. Especially in cases where there is a dispute over child custody and/or child support.
Private investigation can help with these matters.
Wouldn’t you want to know if your child’s future step-parent has a history of substance abuse, violence, driving violations or a criminal record?
These things can be discovered by running a covert background check.
Surveillance is another possible tool.
Surveillance can provide you with information to make informed decisions. It may even ease your mind. Perhaps it could provide a voice to children who are too young to communicate a dangerous situation.
Surveillance answers questions. Do you wonder if, during visitation with the other parent, if your child is being left with a baby sitter or unauthorized relative while your ex attends social events? Are there certain people your child shouldn’t be around because of your concerns, or a court order? Is your child being properly supervised? Is your child being exposed to inappropriate behavior, perhaps substance abuse? Is your child being abused?
Wouldn’t you like to know the answers to these questions?
Are you concerned that your ex is planning to take your child out of state, or worse, out of the country?
Surveillance can be set up to monitor a parent during those visitation to report if they seem to leaving the state or heading to an airport without informing the other parent.
Does your ex have a history of reckless driving or driving under the influence? What about their significant other or relatives? Surveillance can ensure your child is being transported safely.
Does your ex claim that they are not working? Surveillance can show that your ex has a job, allowing your lawyer to subpoena employment records and get the support your child deserves.
Bring the surveillance findings to court. A Private Investigator will prepare a surveillance report as well as any photographic proof, they will also be willing to testify on what they witnessed.
Does your ex “pick fights” with you during child visitation exchanges? Document the exchanges by performing covert surveillance.
Background Checks – What can you find out?
Thomas Ruskin 