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As a private investigator, I’m often asked, "Is it like on TV?"
My usual answer? "Yep. Exactly. Didn’t you see the Ferrari? The
babes?" The truth? Yep. Exactly. Every once in a while. For just a
minute.
For mystery writers and fans, the good news is that there is nothing you
will ever read or write that hasn’t been done, or at least tried, by
some P.I. somewhere at some time. Like a writer, the greatest asset an
investigator can have is his imagination. Just about every day he’s
asked to do something he’s never done before, and probably hasn’t the
foggiest notion how to do. He will improvise, so anything’s possible.
Mostly, though, we ask questions and take notes. And different
techniques go in and out of fashion.
When teaching new operatives, I’ve often said I can get anyone to tell
me anything; all I have to do is figure out who they’d tell, and become
that person. That’s called a pretext interview. It’s a technique
that’s become unpopular of late. We love watching Rockford do it, but
we hate when it’s done to us.
Another question I’m frequently asked is, "How does someone become a
private eye?"
The answer is that it varies greatly. Many are former civilian or
military law enforcement officers. Some began as insurance adjusters or
investigators. And some just answered a newspaper ad for a trainee.
One P.I. of my acquaintance was hired to paint a guy’s boat. The guy
turned out to be a private investigator, and he liked the kid, so he
offered him a full-time job with his agency.
My own career began in 1966, when I went to work for a mercantile credit
reporting agency. I eventually became their Special Investigator,
reporting on commercial frauds and organized crime. Feeling like pretty
hot stuff because I got to sniff around in the mafia’s business, I took
the test and picked up my private investigators license in 1973. A few
years later, I struck out on my own.
Before starting my own agency, I used to tell people the difference
between real and fictional private eyes was real P.I.s don’t investigate
murders. The first two cases I worked as a free-lancer were murder
investigations. As a one-man operator, I soon learned that many private
detectives, myself included, must do many different types of
investigations to put food on the table. Others specialize. Most of us
do make the distinction, however, that what we do must be legal. I
don’t go to jail for anybody.
I also taught investigations and security at a couple of business
colleges, held management positions with security firms and a larger
investigation agency, and served three terms as a District Governor of
the California Association of Licensed Investigators. I was even a
cruise ship investigator for a while.
For the last few years, I’ve specialized in medical malpractice and
other healthcare-related insurance claims. Fortunately for me, the term
healthcare-related can extend from overdosing a patient to stealing her
silverware, and everything in between, so it never gets dull. As I
said, I ask questions and take notes. Every case is a story, every
story a mystery.
* * *
In this column, I’m going to give you the opportunity to ask the
questions. Send me questions related to the field of private
investigations, and I’ll try to answer them. If I don’t have the
answers, I’ll ask around. Or maybe I’ll make something up. Did I
mention I also write fiction?
* * *
Question: Just wanted to ask you what you considered to be the most
important equipment for a new private investigator to have.
Investigator: The most important piece of equipment is a telephone,
followed by a pen, a notepad, a car, a camera and a tape recorder, in
that order. Most of us get by for a whole
career with only that equipment, and maybe a computer for reports, but I
know many investigators who simply call in their reports to a typing
service. While some investigators have special equipment like
surveillance vans, night vision goggles, de-bugging equipment, etc.,
those things aren't essentials for most types of investigations.
Internet information sources are becoming increasingly helpful for
locating people and looking up public records, but many investigators
still prefer to go to the agency and review the reports rather than
relying on computerized sources.
The thing to keep in mind is private investigators mostly interview
people and report. If doing insurance investigations (which is what
employs most of us), we inspect accident scenes and vehicles and take
photos. Few carry guns, and even fewer ever have occasion to use them.
Denise Baton
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