User Panel
Posted: 2/16/2006 3:57:27 PM EDT
Basically my family is party to a lawsuit and one of the witnesses for the othet side just lied his ass off in the deposition. I am looking for info to discredit him as a witness if we go to court. any ideas?
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I have heard advortisement for publicdata.com on the radio, but I have never checked it out.
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property records (central appraisal district for county-- most counties in TX are online and free)
publicdata -- will show criminal history Google-- really... (assuming his name is not generic) local county website-- some list criminal history for free |
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real-estate transaction
basicly a realtor f-ed up and left her comission out of a contract for peice of property we sold. we assusmed she was getting a finders fee from the buyer b/c of things she had said. They had approached us about selling. The property wasn't even on the market. Then, right before closing, she tried to extort the money out of my family by threatening to cancel the deal. we paid a reduced amount as to not lose the deal. blah blah blah, we closed, then sent a letter asking for the money back. she refused. then sued us for unnamed damages making all kinds of bs claims. since then she has been through 2 lawyers and is now respresented by her husband. ok back to liar. He is the one who bought the property. says he overheard discussions that never occurred and "knew we were happy to pay the realtor". She has already been admonished by the whoever governs realtors in Texas. Basically, if she screws up again she loses her license. |
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A corkscrew and a blowtorch will usually get whatever info you want.
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a P.I. and do a little "waste archaeology" to see what you or they come with.
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What part of Texas are you in? I am a PI but not active right now, but I can recommend good ones in the Houston area.
Public Data is not even worth loading the web page! A good paralegal or PI is what you need. We handled such cases as Enron and Firestone to name a few. I know goodpeople in the business but if you are interested in something for nothing then just poke around down at the local county district clerk and county clerks office and check the court records. That is a good place to start. There are a lot of useful web assets I could direct you to but without a PI license and such, they are not accessible for you. |
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Maybe hire a PI, someone off of this board?
Central Texas Investigative Services Keith Norman, owner Tel. (281) 639-0026 TCPS #A-08772 Web: www.ctis.cc Email: [email protected] NFA Investments, A BATFE Licensed Firearms Manufacturer Keith Norman, owner Tel. (281) 639-0026 Type 07 FFL / Class 02 SOT Web: www.NFAinvestments.com Email: [email protected] |
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Not trying to start anything, but I'm curious what kind of data requires a PI license to access. (I work in skip tracing). |
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There are several database companies that will not vendor to the general public because of liability issues. Just look at the Choicepoint debacle.
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Ah, I understand now. And yes, I'm very familiar with ChoicePoint.
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I hope your lawyer put an objection in the deposition record(form only) what the witness testified to was rank hearsay since it comes from a third party declarant. There is however an exception to the hearsay rule--admission against interest. Nontheless I practiced in Houston and found that Pankau investigations did some very good PI work. The Pankaus are especially good at following paper trails and will find the dirt you need to discredit the witness. It also sounds to me like the purchaser and the agent(who is supposed to be working for you )were in Cahoots. Have you supoenaed the agent's phone records. Have you checked up on the Agent with the Texas Board of real estate agents. This Agency has a record of complaints and their disposition. I hope this helps you.
My suggestion(worth what you paid for it) is to mediate the dispute --before you sink any more money into court reporters or lawyers(of which I am one who used to practice in houston). A jury trial is a crapshoot and Harris County juries do not give large awards when they do --which is not often. I am not trying to tell you you will lose your case--just that justice is a very expensive commodity and anything can have a case turn South. I am merely giving you and your family(I was in a suit myself) something to think about. Best of luck to you. |
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Most of the better databases require a PI license for access. DCS, Locateplus, Zebeck, and others all contain sensitive, personal data which is closely regulated by state and Federal laws. This is a good thing. FYI, a Company PI license in Texas requires the licensed manager (often the licensee) to have either a bachelors degree in Criminal Justice or 3-consecutive, verifiable experience as some sort of investigator; no longer doed the State say that someone who was a peace officer but only worked as a jiler qualifies for a PI license, In addition, the license is $350.00 per year, there is a $50.00 fee every other year for the state issued pocket card, and the state required insurance is another $850.00 per year. I have had my own license since 1997, and question my sanity every year I renew... |
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I would be curious to know what could be more sensitive or personal than what is already available publicly. You can already get just about everything right now. The only advantage I see is they may have done the legwork so you do not have to travel to Alaska to read written records. Can you give an example of what is regulated by state/federal law, is not publicly available except to licensed PIs? |
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the purchaser and the agent are "friends" |
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There is no consideration for college experience. Texas Occupations Code Sec.A1702.114.AAADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS FOR INVESTIGATIONS COMPANY LICENSE.AA(a)AAAn applicant for a license to engage in the business of an investigations company or the applicant ’s manager must have, before the date of the application, three consecutive years ’ experience in the investigative field as an employee, manager, or owner of an investigations company or satisfy other requirements set by the commission. 12 (b)The applicant ’s experience must be: (1)reviewed by the commission or the director; and (2)determined to be adequate to qualify the applicant to engage in the business of an investigations company. Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 388, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1999. Amended I am a licensed company manager and run a PI company in Dallas. Interedtingly enough, there are no expereince requirements to work in the capacity as a PI for a licensed company. All PI's must have 16 hours of continuing education every 2 years in order to renew. Hey NFA, are you a member of TALI? |
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Are you sure about that? From PSB website: www.txdps.state.tx.us/psb/forms/forms/PSB-27-GeneralInstructionsforC-L.pdf Texas Department of Public Safety Private Security Bureau PO Box 15999, Austin, Texas 78761-5999 www.txdps.state.tx.us PSB-27 There are additional requirements that must be met by the manager of a guard or investigations company, the person responsible for all the activities of a licensed company, that include: • three years of investigative experience or a bachelors degree in criminal justice for investigations • two consecutive years of legally acceptable experience in the guard company business; and • successful completion of a two-hundred-question examination testing ability of the manager applicant to operate the guard company under the provisions of the statute regulating them. You are correct about simple registrants under the company license not having to have the experience; only the company manager is required to have this. The company cannot be licensed without such a qualified manager. Keith Central Texas Investigative Services Keith Norman, owner Tel. (281) 639-0026 TCPS #A-08772 Web: www.ctis.cc Email: [email protected] |
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Give me a call Monday and I will give you a better rundown over the phone. It would take too long to cover a topic like this over the Web. Keith |
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Nope, same profession; different industry. And I will become the IT VP of the company shortly. |
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There is a lot of information that is public access, and there is information that is generally restricted but available through some indirect public routes. The problem is that most people do not properly understand how to research this information. The online databases are a nice tool but they are not your definitive answer, you must do your own homework. They are a tool towards your goal not a cheat-cheat. |
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LOL, I think that is a true statement for many! I had my own license back in 1997 also, and that was enough experience to tell me that I do not want my own shop! I just hate the marketing! I'm taking a break now from attornies LOL but I may get back in the game after another year overseas. I'm thinking about possibly picking up my PPO for some executive protection side work when I get back. Has anybody seen any real justification to bother with it? Any idea what the domestic gigs are charging/paying for such? I wouldn't mind getting some executive PSD's organized for corp accounts, just as long as I can stick to the operations side and not the sales! I wonder if HPD would have a problem wih some armored Suburbns rolling around with tail gunners :) |
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You hit the nail right on the head. I am an investigator - not a salesman. If I could make the same kind of money working for another firm where someone else did the marketing, I would do it in a minute. Unfortunately, that never seems to be the case. As for the PPO thing, please let me know if you get it. I don't know of anyone local who does this. When I worked as an investigator with Pinkerton, we used off duty troopers for PPO's. I don't know how much work is out there, but I too have considered adding that to my license. "Dancers" will sometimes hire PPO's to see them safely home from a club, but that can open up a can of worms if the dancers are actually having you protect them while they are engaging in criminal activity such as prostitution, drugs, etc. |
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You know, I never read that page on the PSB website. The law I quoted was straight from the occupations code, also linked on their website. I don't find any reference to a degree in the Administrative Code either??? look here at 1702.114. It does read that one can "satisfy other requirements set by the commission"; however, other than the document you found, I cannot find an actual rule that refers to a degree being acceptable. I guess the commission decided the degree was satisfactory, but they failed to make it part of their Administrative rules. Nice find. |
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Agree on the marketing. It is critical for success, but I hate it. As far as PPO's, we get calls for them from time to time. Most are hostile terminations. We have also escorted out of town jewelers, etc. In 2002 we did a nearly year long gig for an insurance company who insured Huntington Labs out of the UK. They were a target of a radical animal protection group called SHAC (Stop Huntington Animal Cruelty) They were very active and we actually had the FBI involved when several of them tried to vandalise a home we were protecting. One of them was on the FBI terrorist watch list. If you want to see some strange people, Google SHAC. |
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I wish I could claim it, but a good friend of mine is a PI who was licensed under this provision. I had no idea that it existed until he showed me. He has been licensed since around 1998. Keith |
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Well I have heard my calling
I have been interested in the P.I. Profession for a long time and I am one heck of a sales guy. I can sell ice cubes to Eskimos-WITHOUT LYING!!! Any of you Houston PI guys interested in a “sales/marketing” guy give me a call. We can work something out. |
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It is usally a bit more than just sales, it helps to rub elbows in the attorney circles. I've seen some people throw away their family lives because of how much marketing was required, i'm just not willing to make that sacrifice.
I think I did well as an employee PI (upper $50K's) but it is difficult position to be in when you want to do even better without making that final commitment. It's just not what I want to do the rest of my life anyway. I'm thinking about a restaraunt later! |
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