H7 Investigative Services

Private Investigations in Southern California

Private Investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley . . .

. . . and the greater Los Angeles area.

PI Blog

When to Hire a Private Investigator for Criminal Defense

by Leave a Comment

When you’ve been wrongly accused of a criminal offense, it can feel as if the weight of the whole world is against you. The prosecutor has a very large toolbox from which to pull resources. Law enforcement, witness testimony, evidence collected by law enforcement, and the legal team backing the prosecution all work together to reach a guilty verdict. You’ll need more than just a defense attorney to win your case. A private investigator for criminal defense can be instrumental in uncovering new evidence to prove your innocence.

Private Investigator for Criminal Defense

When is the Best Time to Hire a Private Investigator for Criminal Defense?

The short answer is immediately. A private investigator should be hired as soon as possible to help with any criminal defense. An investigator can be much more effective when a case is still fresh. Witnesses’ memories are still fresh, evidence has only recently been placed in storage, and in many cases new evidence can be found at crime scenes that was overlooked by law enforcement.

But even if a case is in the post-conviction stage, a private investigator can still help with an appeal. Just as with a pre-conviction criminal trial, a private investigator can help with in the appeals process by reviewing the entire state’s case including witness statements, law enforcement reports, and all the discovery items presented by the prosecution. The best way a private investigator can help with an appeal is to discover new evidence to show who actually committed the crime. In most cases, showing the actual guilty party is more effective than simply showing the convicted person is innocent of the crime.

Private Investigator for Criminal Defense

Justice for Victims

Justice is supposed to be blind, and the law is supposed to show that an accused person is innocent until proven guilty. But human nature works a bit different. Many jurors, whether they admit it or not, believe a defendant to be guilty simply because they’ve been charged with a crime. The rationale is “well they must have done it, otherwise there would be no reason to charge them.”

Ask anyone who has worked in a jury pool and you’ll find that most people assume the accused to be guilty. Guilt beyond a reasonable doubt is supposed to be the standard for the state to secure a guilty verdict. Too often a wrongly accused person is forced to prove their innocence, which can be difficult considering all the resources at the state’s disposal.

Arresting criminal offenders and preventing crime are both primary goals of the criminal justice system. This is the only way to find justice for victims and their families. When an innocent person is convicted of a crime, there is no justice for the victims and certainly no justice for the wrongly convicted defendant. What’s more, the actual offender is likely out committing other crimes and creating new victims.

A private investigator is an essential component of any adequate criminal defense team. The sooner an investigator is brought in to help, the greater impact the investigator will have in building an effective criminal defense.

H7 Investigative Services conducts private investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to find out how our agency can help with your case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

Private Investigator for Criminal Defense

Why Do Lawyers Hire Private Investigators?

by Leave a Comment

It takes years of training to develop the research and litigation skill to become an attorney. Even the best attorneys may sometimes find themselves without the time or resources to find the information they need to win in the courtroom. For this reason, many lawyers hire private investigators to help with criminal defense cases and in civil litigation.  For a fraction of what a law firm might pay a new associate, a law firm can hire a private investigator to conduct much of the legal legwork.

Lawyers Hire Private Investigators

 

Criminal Defense

One of the most important reasons lawyers hire private investigators is to assist with criminal defense. While lawyers are excellent at building a court case, most lawyers don’t have the time or expertise to conduct a field investigation. A good defense investigator is skilled at analyzing data, applying statutory law and case law, and will understand the rules of preserving evidence.

A private investigator can also locate evidence that may have been overlooked or outright withheld by the prosecutor’s side.

How can there be other evidence? Don’t the police collect everything?

In a criminal case, many people mistakenly believe the prosecution will collect and present all the available evidence. In reality, law enforcement and the prosecution will collect only what evidence is necessary to secure a conviction.

By law, the prosecutor must share with the defense attorney all the evidence collected for the case. Sometimes law enforcement will recognize only evidence that confirms their theory of the crime. Anything not relevant to the goal of convicting the accused will either be ignored or simply left uncollected.

How can a defense attorney build an adequate defense when they use only the evidence gathered by law enforcement? The answer is they can’t.

A private investigator working as part of the criminal defense team can find new witnesses, find inconsistencies in the accounts of reported witnesses, and can point out discrepancies in the law enforcement reports. A PI can also re-examine a given crime scene to get a different perspective from what was reported by law enforcement.

Lawyers Hire Private Investigators

Some other reasons lawyers hire private investigators may include:

Locating Witnesses

Known witnesses can sometimes be hard to find because they have moved, changed cell phone providers, or are simply not responding to phone calls. Previously unknown witnesses might be revealed by conducting thorough and effective interviews of the known witnesses. A private investigator can do skip tracing to locate hard to find witnesses and can interview new witnesses who are revealed through the course of an investigation.

Obtaining Video or Photo Evidence

Surveillance is one of the “bread and butter” activities of any private investigator. Video surveillance is often very instrumental in child custody and infidelity cases, insurance fraud, and employee theft or workers compensation. Video and photographs are compelling evidence that can both be nearly impossible to refute. Private investigators have the skill and patience to capture relevant video and photo evidence, all while remaining undetected.

Finding Hidden Assets

Unfortunately, marriages and business partnerships sometimes end in bitter disputes. In either situation, one party might attempt to gain advantage by hiding assets. One party may sell assets for ridiculously low prices or put other family members on the titles of various assets, all to prevent the other party from winning a large judgement. A private investigator can help to locate missing or undeclared property, hidden financial accounts, and track the movement of property from one supposed owner to another. Locating these assets can greatly affect the final ruling in a civil case.

Background Checks

Lawyers hire private investigators to conduct background checks on potential clients, witnesses, and the opposition in civil and criminal cases. A background check may delve into criminal records, employment history, civil records, personal references and education records. Contrary to popular belief, attorneys will not simply work for any person that comes through their door. A lawyer will want to know if they can really help the potential client and if the lawyer’s time is worthwhile investment for the client. A thorough background check can reveal valuable information to negotiate a quick settlement or information that is critical to win a given case. PI’s use private databases that are only available to the licensed investigators.  PI’s can also use open source data such as social media and public records searches to dig into a person’s background.

A private investigator should be a valued member of any legal team. Because of their specialized analytical and investigative skills, private investigators can help a lawyer more quickly and effectively build their client’s case.

H7 Investigative Services conducts private investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to find out how our agency can help with your criminal defense case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

Criminal Defense Investigation

Do Defense Attorneys Hire Private Investigators?

by Leave a Comment

The job of a defense attorney, also known as a criminal defense lawyer, is to represent their client against accusations of criminal misconduct. A defense attorney is paid to win the best possible outcome for their client. Defense attorneys are excellent at analyzing criminal cases, including all evidence turned over by the prosecution. But sometimes an attorney may not have the time, resources, or expertise to complete a more in-depth investigation. Defense attorneys hire private investigators to uncover new evidence or provide expertise that will help to exonerate the accused.

Defense Attorneys Hire Private Investigators

Do Defense Attorneys Hire Private Investigators?

A defense attorney is obligated to work just as diligently in building a legal defense for their client as the prosecution team is at putting together the case against the accused. In most cases, a thorough defense requires more than just the evidence provided by the state. After all, the state’s evidence is what will be used to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. A defense team often will require outside assistance from a private investigator who can help to find new witnesses and evidence to uncover reasonable doubt.

How Does a Private Investigator Help a Defense Attorney?

A private investigator can review all the discovery items from the prosecution for any inconsistencies or unanswered questions in police reports, collected evidence, photographs and videos, and recorded statements. A private investigator can go to the actual crime scene and recreate what was described by law enforcement, often uncovering new facts and details.

While an attorney reviews their client’s case, researches case law, and prepares their client for court, a private investigator can interview witnesses the police have overlooked and uncover new evidence to help exonerate the accused. Private investigators are skilled at locating hard to find people, such as witnesses who have moved or are otherwise unable to be located.

Defense Attorneys Hire Private Investigators

The Police Have Already Collected All the Evidence, Right?

Not everything that occurred involving a criminal accusation may have been recorded in the law enforcement report. Law enforcement officers are human beings with natural biases, just like anyone else. While training and experience can limit the effects, bias can sometimes creep into a law enforcement investigation. The police will often only collect evidence that shows their suspect to be guilty and ignore evidence that may contradict their theory of the crime.

To make an arrest, law enforcement only needs to prove probable cause that a crime was committed and the person to be arrested committed the offense. In many cases, once the threshold of probable cause has been reached, law enforcement will not investigate further. Information that runs contrary to what law enforcement investigators believe to be true may sometimes be outright ignored. This leaves a huge opportunity for a private investigator to uncover information that was overlooked by the police.

By law, the prosecutor is required to share with the defense all evidence and materials collected by the police. But a defense attorney can only work with whatever evidence was given over by the prosecution. A skilled private investigator can review a case and discover clues as to what evidence is missing and likely to be discovered. Even witnesses who were interviewed by the police can be re-interviewed to develop new leads.

The prosecution team is in the business of winning convictions, not necessarily a search for the truth. The most skilled defense attorney cannot win a case for their client without evidence to demonstrate reasonable doubt. This is why a private investigator is a critical component of a winning criminal defense team.

H7 Investigative Services conducts private investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to find out how our agency can help with your criminal defense case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

4 Ways Private Investigators Help Legal Professionals

by Leave a Comment

A private investigator is essentially an information gatherer. Legal professionals such as attorneys and paralegals often hire private investigators to help with criminal defense, child custody and divorce, and all manner of civil cases. Legal professionals often hire private investigators to conduct interviews, locate hard-to-find documents, and perform surveillance for all types of civil litigation. Here are four ways private investigators help legal professionals.

Investigators Help Legal Professionals

Locate People

Legal professionals often hire private investigators to locate missing persons – including heirs, witnesses, and people who have skipped out on a debt or hide from service of process. Private investigators locate people by using proprietary databases, public records, and good old fashioned hitting the street. Private investigators who specialize in skip tracing can usually find someone quicker and for less money than a solo attorney or paralegal.

Take Statements

Legal professionals often hire private investigators to take statements. A licensed investigator will have years of experience, much of which involves recording witness statements. A PI can help an attorney by being an impartial third party, which can eliminate the appearance of bias in collecting witness information.

A PI can collect a statement by various means such as handwritten, digital audio recorded, over the telephone, or video recording. Statements can be collected through a short informal conversation or by way of a formal conference with all the necessary recording tools. Taking statements can become difficult if the interviewee becomes confrontational or if they speak only a foreign language.

Investigators Help Legal Professionals

Background Investigations

The two types of background investigations private investigators conduct on a person or on a business. Personal background investigations can be for anything from vetting a potential marriage partner to pre-employment screenings. The person may or may not be aware of the investigation. Areas of search include criminal history, driving records, credit checks, reference checks, education verification, and property records. More recently, a background check might include a check of relevant social media posts, status updates, photos, and online conversations.

Background investigations for businesses can be a little more complicated and can involve pre-employment or post-employment screenings, background checks of corporate officers, or an investigation of the business itself. An investigation of the business might include due diligence, mergers and acquisitions, trademark or intellectual property infringement, and employee theft.

Locating Hidden Assets

Family law cases involving prenuptial agreements, divorce, or child support often involve hidden assets. In the business world, business partners may hide assets from one another, or a person may attempt to shield assets that would otherwise be involved in a bankruptcy filing. Legal professionals often hire private investigators to help locate hidden assets.

A PI would first need to determine if any assets are owned by the subject of the investigation. A good private investigator can locate property such motorcycles, trucks and automobiles, recreational vehicles, boats, aircraft. They can also locate and find out the value of real property such as homes, commercial buildings or land. PI’s locate financial records such as bank accounts, investments, or hidden income.

H7 Investigative Services conducts private investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to find out how our agency can help with your case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

Is Being a Private Investigator Dangerous?

by Leave a Comment

New private investigators are always excited to get out and start doing the job. Part of the draw of being an investigator is the sense of fun and adventure. While the job can be exciting, each new assignment comes with inherent risks. A professional investigator can mitigate most of the risks by staying aware of their surroundings and sticking to the fundamentals of the job. But even the most seasoned professional will tell you that being a private investigator involves many potentially dangerous situations.

Is Being a Private Investigator Dangerous?

 

Is Being a Private Investigator Dangerous?

Some of the most common investigative assignments involve interviewing witnesses to a criminal offense, conducting surveillance on child custody or infidelity cases, and investigating various forms of insurance fraud. Most people don’t like the idea of an investigator snooping into their private lives, especially when they have something to hide. Investigative findings could negatively affect a subject’s personal finances or relationships.

It’s not uncommon for the subject of a surveillance to become physically aggressive toward an investigator when the surveillance is compromised. Not only the investigation subject, but also members of the subject’s neighborhood could cause problems for a private investigator whose surveillance is discovered. Suspicious neighbors could become confrontational, especially in sparsely populated rural communities where it’s very easy to spot an out-of-place vehicle.

Mobile Surveillance

Being confronted by a hostile subject is a dangerous proposition. Training and experience can greatly reduce the risk that a subject will detect a PI and cause a confrontation. Mobile surveillance is an exercise in extreme multi-tasking. You must deal with all the dangers of normal driving while following a subject and doing your best not to get spotted. Experienced PI’s will tell you that simple automobile traffic during mobile surveillance poses a greater risk to the average PI than being physically assaulted by a subject.

Is Being a Private Investigator Dangerous

PI’s must make frequent stops, slow-downs, and accelerations to maintain distance with a mobile subject and to catch up when they get too far away. Defensive driving is essential, but often a private investigator can get tunnel vision on their subject and miss traffic hazards they would have otherwise noticed. Weather conditions can also pose a danger even to an experienced investigator with excellent mobile skills.

Other Dangers of Being a Private Investigator

Investigative assignments often involve dangerous immediate circumstances, but the job of a private investigator also involves long term risks as well. Long hours and irregular work patterns can interrupt normal sleep patterns. The work schedule can also interrupt normal family and relationship activities, which can have a negative long-term psychological effect on the investigator. Sitting for long periods of time and having to eat less than nutritious food while on the job can result in many negative health effects.

The job of a private investigator is much different than your normal 9-to-5. For most investigators, the dangers involved are a fair trade for all the benefits of being a private investigator.

What Information Can a Private Investigator Obtain?

by Leave a Comment

Private investigators pride themselves on being professional information collectors. Some are better than others, but a good investigator will know all the ins and outs of a specific investigative niche. From legal defense, corporate due diligence, background checks, and even cheating spouses and skip tracing, you need to know what information a private investigator can obtain for your case.

What Information Can a Private Investigator Obtain?

What Information Can a Private Investigator Obtain?

Public records are one of the primary sources private investigators get information for their clients. While any citizen can search public records on their own, a PI has the knowledge, skills, and experience to look in the right places to find the right information. Marriage and divorce records, deeds and mortgages, wills, and civil and criminal case records are some of the main information sources for private investigators. Many PI’s are experts at using Freedom of Information Act requests to petition the government for information.

Private investigators are not law enforcement and do not have access to law enforcement-only databases. Private investigators have access to the same information available to any other citizen. One advantage they do have over the average citizen though is access to private databases such as TLO, IRB Search, and LexisNexis. These companies require a person to hold a PI license before they can purchase access. Private databases aggregate hard-to-find public records, greatly increasing the speed at which PI’s can do their jobs. These databases are an invaluable tool when doing background searches or searching for missing persons.

What Kind of Records are PI’s Able to Find?

Private Investigators are skilled at finding public information, to include:

  • Criminal Records
  • Court Orders
  • Credit History
  • Driving Records
  • Employment
  • Property Records
  • Judgements and Bankruptcies
  • Military Service

What Information Can a Private Investigator Obtain?

What Information Can a Private Investigator Not Obtain?

Not all information is available to the public, even for licensed private investigators. Phone records, financial accounts, internet service providers, and medical records are all protected information. The only way to access such records is with an account holder’s permission or by way of a court order. In cases such as background checks where the subject has given permission for certain inquiries, a private investigator may be able to search these records.

In most cases, a private citizen can find the information they need without the help of a professional. Just because a record is public doesn’t mean its easy to find. Someone first must know where to look. In many cases a person must also know what information is relevant to a particular case. A skilled private investigator can be a valuable resource when you don’t have the time or expertise to find the information you need.

H7 Investigative Services conducts private investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to find out how our agency can help with your case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

Can Private Investigators Make Arrests?

by Leave a Comment

The worlds of private investigators and traditional law enforcement often cross paths. For this reason, some people think PI’s have the same legal authority as law enforcement. Clients often ask is “Can private investigators make arrests?” While PI’s specialize in getting information that is normally hard to find, they must still work within legal boundaries.

Police Making Arrest

What is an Arrest?

The act of making an arrest is taken very seriously in the United States because an arrest is the suspension or interruption of a person’s freedom of movement. An arrest occurs when a person is taken into custody either for questioning about an offense or to be formally charged with a crime. Laws within the United States grant powers of arrest to specific public officials, most notably the police. In some states, any person can make a citizen’s arrest when a crime has occurred. But a citizen’s arrest amounts to not more than temporary detention until law enforcement can be called to make an actual arrest of an offender.

Can Private Investigators Make Arrests?

Although most states require private investigators to be licensed, being licensed or running a PI firm does not convey any special law enforcement arrest authority. A PI may not even be able to make a citizen’s arrest when a crime has been committed in the PI’s presence. Some states allow any person to make a citizen’s arrest, but even then, a PI is better off being a good witness for the police. When a crime is being committed, the safest course of action is to document the incident and contact law enforcement. The police can make the arrest, and the PI can be a good witness for the prosecution.

Citizen's Arrest

What about Making a Citizen’s Arrest?

Making a citizen’s arrest can be a risky proposition. Most criminals don’t want to be arrested when law enforcement is involved, so imagine how your average criminal might react when a regular person tries placing him or her under arrest. Are you willing to chase a person and use physical force until law enforcement arrives? What if it turns out you were wrong, and the person did not commit a crime? Think of the civil liabilities involved with making an arrest and possibly injuring the person, not to mention the risk of injuring yourself, other people, or damaging personal property.

Most private investigators do not want to accept the liability of making a citizen’s arrest. You should be very cautious of any PI who says otherwise. As a client, you could also be held liable for a private investigators misconduct. Hiring a professional licensed private investigator with a proven track record of ethical conduct is tremendously important.

Private Investigators can Assist Law Enforcement

Contrary to media portrayals, investigators in the public sector (i.e. police, sheriff’s departments, state police, etc.) don’t always have the time or resources to concentrate on every case. Law enforcement will be unlikely to open an investigation unless a crime or breach of public trust has been committed. A private investigator working on behalf of a client can dedicate his or her full attention and resources to a single case, often developing the information law enforcement need to justify opening a criminal case.

On the other hand, when law enforcement does open a criminal case, the police often will only develop enough evidence to present criminal charges. Undiscovered witnesses or other types of evidence could still exist to exonerate an innocent person and implicate an actual guilty party. Private investigators can be instrumental in these circumstances, especially when working with a criminal defense team.

H7 Investigative Services conducts private investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to find out how our agency can help with your case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

Can a Private Investigator Get Phone Records?

by Leave a Comment

One question clients often ask is “Can a private investiture get phone records?” Unfortunately the answer is nearly always an emphatic “No.” You may find information on the internet that will tell you otherwise. The truth is that unless you’re the owner of the service account, it’s almost impossible to get access to phone records without a subpoena or search warrant.

Private Investigator Phone Records

Can a Private Investigator Get Phone Records?

Even today you’ll come across websites with claims of being able to access copies of telephone records. Up until 2006, it was possible to use a technique called pretexting to obtain someone else’s phone records. Companies used pretexting to impersonate an account holder to falsely obtain confidential information found only in phone records. In 2007 the Telephone Records and Privacy Protection Act made it a federal felony to fraudulently acquire telephone records.

The only legal way to go about obtaining phone records is by specific permission of the telephone line owner or by way of a court order such as a subpoena or search warrant. Obtain records by any other method and you could be charged with a felony. Hiring a private investigator to get the information for you is also illegal and could get you both charged with conspiracy.

What Are My Options?

Even though you may not be able to legally obtain someone’s phone records, a licensed private investigator can use legal methods to gather the information you need. Most times the information you may hope to gather from phone records is only one part of an entire investigation. Other investigative techniques such as surveillance and social media searches can often answer the questions you have without resorting to illegal methods.

If you’ve hired a private investigator in conjunction with an ongoing court case, you may get lucky and get a court order to have the records. Criminal defense is where a judge is likely to order a witness to present phone records for examination. Rarely will phone records be subpoenaed in a civll case.

Don’t waste your money on unscrupulous companies online who promise to obtain personal phone records. The information they provide is purchased from phone data brokers and call lists in addition to other illegal methods such as pretexting.

Your best option is to hire a licensed private investigator who is experienced and knows the legalities of conducting a professional investigation.

H7 Investigative Services conducts private investigations in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to find out how our agency can help with your case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

Can a Private Investigator Serve Court Papers?

by Leave a Comment

In the past, a county sheriff’s office would handle legal service of court documents. But over time, sheriffs could no longer handle the work load of both law enforcement and tracking down persons to be served with legal documents. Every state in the US has laws specifying who can conduct process of service. With the expertise and tracking abilities of a most private investigators, you might be asking yourself, “Can a private investigator serve court papers?”

Private Investigator Serve Court Papers

Can a Private Investigator Serve Court Papers?

Yes, a PI can serve court papers, but every state is different. Many states allow anyone over the age of 18 who is not party to the case to serve legal papers. This is true in California, but anyone who serves papers more than 10 times per year must register with the state by posting a cash bond and passing a background check.

The rules are different for PI’s though. California has very strict requirements for licensing as a private investigator in the state. For this reason, in California licensed private investigators are exempt from registering as process servers. Many other states in the US have similar laws, so check with your state before you hire a process server to handle your legal paperwork.

Many states’ requirements model the laws in California, but others are more stringent. For instance, in Nevada you must be a citizen who is at least 21 years old, pass a background check, have 2 years of experience as a process server, pass a state exam, and carry not less than $200,000 in professional liability insurance.

Hire a Private Investigator to Handle Your Court Papers

While there are many highly professional process service agencies in the US, the relatively low barrier to entry means pretty much anyone who can pass a background check can register as a process server. Hiring a licensed private investigator ensures a level of expertise and professionalism that you won’t find with a random person who is only registered to serve process.

Trying to find people who do not want to be found is one of the bigger challenges of process serving. Most private investigators have expertise in “skip tracing,” PI lingo for tracking down people whose whereabouts are unknown. PI’s use a wide range of methods and techniques to find missing persons. When a person is located, a PI can use various ruses to coax a person into coming out into the open where they can be served court papers.

Why do Private Investigators Serve Court Papers?

Due process is a Constitutionally protected right in the United States that guarantees fair treatment under the law. Due process also requires the government to follow certain legal formalities before depriving a person of life, liberty, or property. Part of due process requires that a person be formally notified when they are the subject of criminal or civil court proceedings. Private Investigators ensure due process is protected by making every reasonable effort to serve court papers.

When initiating a lawsuit or preparing a criminal defense case, you’ll eventually have court documents that require service to the parties named on the documents. It may seem like a simple task to hand court papers over to the appropriate person, but as you may likely discover, a lot of people have absolutely no desire to be summoned to court. Who can serve court papers? Can a private investigator serve court papers for you?

Process Server

Can a Private Investigator Serve Court Papers?

In California, anyone who is age 18 years or older and is not involved in the case being litigated can serve legal papers. Any private person who conducts more than 10 services of process per year must register with the state and post $2,000 cash surety bond. Basically anyone can register to be a process server in California.

On the other hand, licensed California private investigators are exempt from these requirements of registered process servers – California Business and Professions Code 22350(b)(4).

A process server can be good option in specific situations. For instance, if a person is willing to be served or if they’re very easy to find, a process server is an economical option.

On the other hand, a licensed private investigator can help track down difficult people and can conduct surveillance to ensure the right person is served. Unlike most process servers, private investigators have access to proprietary databases to help identify accurate contact information. And because California has such stringent laws to become a licensed private investigator, a PI will have the training and experience to more safely serve an otherwise difficult defendant or witness.

H7 Investigative Services conducts service of process in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

If you want to know how our agency can help with your case, click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513.

How Can A Private Investigator Help with Child Custody?

by Leave a Comment

Child custody cases usually involve tremendous stress and emotional turmoil. The child’s well-being should be the most important factor when parents are working out child custody agreements, but a relatively smooth divorce process can often grind to a halt when considering the issue of child custody. Both sides can present reasonable claims as to why one parent is more fit than the other to have sole custody. If you have a family law attorney already working on your case, you be asking yourself, “How can a private investigator help with child custody?”

Child Custody Case

How Can A Private Investigator Help with Child Custody?

Private investigators help in child custody cases by gathering evidence. Perhaps you need more evidence to show that you are truly an ideal parent. On the other hand, you may want to disprove allegations that both you and the other parent know to be false. A child custody agreement may already be in place, but you could have concerns that the other parent is neglecting your child or causing other types of abuse. A private investigator can uncover the necessary information for the courts to decide which parent is the most fit to care for the child.

The Private Investigators Role in Child Custody Cases

Your family law attorney will know the type of information needed to win your court case. In most cases though, the attorney does not have the time or expertise to go out and gather the information. That’s where a private investigator can help. PI’s use a variety of tactics and methods for gathering information.

Some basic tasks a PI can perform to gather evidence for your case include:

Witness Interviews

Many people can give statements about a child’s general well-being and the conditions in the home. Relatives and neighbors are usually the first to be interviewed and can provide some of the most detailed information. Teachers, day care workers, and babysitters can also provide vital information. The PI can collect witness testimony regarding specific situations a witness has personally observed. The family law attorney can then decide what interviews contain useful information and subpoena witnesses to testify in court about the situations they observed.

Conducting Surveillance

Witness testimony is strong source of evidence in any court case, but nothing is more compelling than video and photographic evidence. A PI can use surveillance techniques to visually document a child’s living conditions, any neglect or abuse, criminal activity in or around the home, and various other situations that may endanger the child’s well-being. Surveillance video and photographs can accurately capture all the habits and behaviors to show when a parent is unfit to keep custody of their child.

Performing Background Checks

A PI can discover much more about a person than the image they present in person or on social media. A check of criminal and civil records often reveals important evidence to strengthen your child custody case. A professional investigator can often find records that you might not even know exist. Even if you know where to look, you may not have the time or energy to do the leg work of going to the various state and local records depositories. Finding hidden assets can also help to show that a parent is avoiding their financial responsibilities to their child.

Child Custody Investigation

The private investigator role is to discover and gather raw information pertaining to your case. The attorney’s job is to sort through the information and organize it into a clear and presentable picture for the court.

Time is of the essence in all child custody cases. H7 Investigative Services can discover the vital information you need to help win your child custody case in Santa Clarita, Antelope Valley, and the greater Los Angeles area.

Click through to our consultation request page or call us at (661)454-7513 to contact a licensed private investigator with H7 Investigative Services.