Need help/info with PI's.

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davidtdm

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To keep this gun related.......I've carrired while all this transpired and still continues to ...

Well, I'll try to keep this short. My ultimate goal for this thread is to have a few responses from some folks that have some infomation on private citizens rights when they are being investigated by a PI.

I've been followed since Last week (I noticed them on 1/8/04). On Friday the 9th a vehicle followed me (and he went out of his way to do so) for about 15 miles through backroads. I realized that this same vehicle was following me on thursday. I stopped in the parking lot of McDonalds and called the police. The PI (which I later found out that he was a PI) was parked across the street. Two officers arrived at my location. ( I informed the dispatch to let the officers know that I was armed) When they arrived and I exited my vehicle the PI booked real quick. Three squad cars attempted to find him but he slipped away. Later that evening I called the dispatch again wanting to try to get an offical report. They sent the same officer who initially responded to the Mcdonalds. I gave the officer the tag # of the vehicle he ran the plates and gave the info to me. The officer was real nice and gave me a few tips on what to do if I spot them again.

I did an internet search on the company who registerd the vehicle and found out it was a PI firm. I also found out who the agents are an have both their state license #'s and the agency #. I stayed in all day on saturday and then went to church on Sunday evening. Well, again I was followed. this time to church and after church to a resturant with friends. This time it was a different vehicle. The vehicle was waiting at an intersection on the main road from where the resturant was, waiting for me to go home

On Monday...... Is anyone seing a pattern here. Yes they were at it again. This time I saw that there are now two PI's following in two differrent cars.

Well needless to say I'm a bit preturbed at this. I have no idea why anyone would want to have me investigated. I'm at a point where I feel my safety as well as my privacy has been comprimised. I feel I've done the right thing by bringing in the police. The suggested that if they continue the following , then I should call the cops again and try to tell them ahead of time of where I'm going. this is a bit difficult. The PI's have changed there way of how they follow me. They kind of tag team me so to speak. As soon as I get a tag # on the vehicles I will call the cops and hopefully I can do something with herassment.

Like I said before I'me carring. My safety feels threatened. Thouigh that is not enough to even think about any use of my firearm. I even feel that they know I'm carring and are waiting if I do something dumb like that. Like they are trying to bait me.

Does anyone know of any laws that protect citizens from such behaivor. I'm trying to contact the state department that deals with or governs the PI's but I'm not having any luck..

This feels like a house arrest. I'm afraid to go to friends homes and famillar places so they don't get involved.

Any suggestions would be helpfull.

...Dave
 
While I am entirely sypathetic with you, I think they have the right to do what they want. You have no gaurantee of privacy in a public place as you describe (a public bathroom may be a different story). I believe some states don't even liscence PI's and in no state that I know of do they have any special power's. I can appreiate being creeped out. I would suggest making sure they know your on to them, then, maybe they will lay off as why would you do anything they are looking for when you know they would see you. I think 90% of what PI's do are workman comp or disability claims and cheating spouses. This is not to imply that you are involved in either.

I am just a layman and these are an amatuer assesment at best.
 
That's pretty creepy, man. I know nothing about PIs, but I just thought I should wish you good luck. It's especially creepy when you don't have a clue why they'd be investigating you. :uhoh:

Maybe you can just contact the PI agency and just ask them bald-faced: "WTH? Can I help you with something?" :scrutiny:

Hopefully someone here who knows more about this can help you more than I can.

Good luck.
Wes
 
Thanks for the replies and the sympathy.

I'm not married nor dating so I aint cheating on anyone. I was layed off in october so there is no wokers comp or anything like that. I thought about approaching them. Right now they don't know that I know who they are. So I think that I have a little to stand on if I call the cops while they're following a concerned citizen. Once I get some more information a lawyer will do my speaking for me and put them on notice. Other than that, I don't know if there is much more I can do.

...dave
 
Funny, I was just about to suggest the long trip that TallPine did. That could be fun for you if youhave some time to kill. Get their collective a$$es out to the middle of nowhere and stop and confront them if possible. If I weren't such an upstanding guy, I might even be inclined to slash a couple of their tires to make sure they don't follow you back but that might be borderline lunacy talking, I don't know.

Point being, don't be afraid of them. They cannot harm you. Approach them and let them know you don't appreciate nor will you tolerate their little game. If you feel threatned at anytime, do what you need to do. No one should have to be subjected to this type of harassment.

GT
 
I'm filling up about everyday just to keep the tank full. I want to see how long they can go. I have a jeep. So the fun with offroading could happen. :D

...dave
 
Any type of confrontatuion on my part is probably what they're are looking for. I will let a lawyer do the confronting. Now, if something should happen to them while they're following me .... well who's to say whose fault it is....

...dave
 
I had this one dude following me for no apparent reason that i could discern once when i was driving home. I simply drove around the same block over and over again. Eventually he drove off and insted of doing the smart thing, i followed HIM for a change. I dont think he liked it cause he spend off at an unreasonable rate of speed after awhile.

You could figure out the location of their agency and load up your car with food, magazines (the reading kind). Next time they follow you lead them straight to their own agency and park outside, enjoy a nice picnic and a your reading material (portable DVD player would be REALLY nice) and wait for them to get off work and follow them to their homes and make a habit of stopping by their residences every now and then just for the heck of it.

On the other hand im kind of a jerk and you might not want to take my advice.
 
Call a PI of your own and ask them what to do. I'm sure he would know of how to handle them. The advice would be free and he might offer his services for a reasonable rate. I've never had any dealings with any PI's but Rockfords rate was $200.00 a day plus expenses. Keep us posted on this.
 
If you've got a camera with a zoom lens it could be amusing to ostentatiously (sp?) take pictures of them every time you stop.

Smile at them, wave, let them know you care. :evil:
 
Who's your car registered to?

Do you drive a car you've borrowed from a family member or relative?
Perhaps it's a case of mistaken identity.

As others have said, 90% of P.I. work is workmans comp/insurance fraud, and spouse/girlfriend/divorce trouble.

If you have none of these entanglments as you say, it could be some kind of screwup. Perhaps you can get a 500 yard restraining order on the firm and it's agents?
 
Bananna in the tail pipe. that would be funny.

I might call a PI to see waht they say.

I've been carring my digital camera since the week end with me. However. I might take my SLR with my 300 to 500 mm zoom and realy let them know I'm watching them too.

Well, I need to venture out and run somw erands. I'll keep you guys posted. Thanks for all the comments.

...dave
 
A few words or advice from a former PI:

There's definitely a reason someone has hired a PI to tag you, because it's not cheap. When I was a PI, my firm charged $800 for the half day, $1600 for a full one. We almost exclusively worked insurance claims, so the clients had deep pockets; not all firms are that costly. Regardless, someone is spending good money on you. You should be flattered! ;)

Try to figure out why someone would want to tail you. If you can't figure it out, it's possible they are in error. It'd be blowing it bigtime to not be sure it was you by now, but I've seen cases where the wrong person was followed simply because they moved into a place that used to be rented by someone else who needed to be followed.

If you know what firm is following you, you really don't have anything to lose by contacting them and asking what's going on. If nothing else, they'll realize they've been made and pull off. This might solve your problem, or it might just give you a different firm's PI's to look for, depending on how gung-ho the person who wants to know something about you is.

You can make life hard for them if you'd like. The aforementioned off-roading is one way, and you can come up with a variety of way to lose them in traffic. Bear in mind though, what they are doing isn't illegal, so don't do something illegal to get away from them--that'll just cost you more money.

KEEP YOUR BLINDS SHUT! Anything they can shoot with a video camera or observe through an open window is fair game! Check your state laws regarding taping conversations. Where I worked, it was not illegal to tape a conversation if either a. you were involved in it or b. the conversing parties were not making an effort to conceal what they were discussing. Taping could occur without all of the parties to the conversation being aware of such.

Lastly, check with your attorney to see if you can press stalking charges if this goes on much longer. Law varies by state.

I worked single days, 2 day occasionally on a single subject to avoid being made. If these guys have been around for this long, they're either being made to do so by the client, or are just really stupid.

-Teuf
 
Have them follow you to the range and see you shoot the middle out of target:D
Seriously,this is a little scary.....I would go to their office and ask what the hell they're doing...call their boss,your lawyer and the police.....:cool:
 
Have a lawyer send the PI firm a letter asking for a reason for the surveillance.

Call your local Justice of the Peace or the equivalent and tell them that the constant surveillance is emotionally stressful, and haul the PI firm into Small Claims Court, or your local equivalent thereof.

Ask the JP to consider a Cease and Desist order, or the local variant filed against the PI firm.

LawDog
 
I'd like to ask...how good of a driver are you? I like the offroading idea. If you know of a particular dirt trail you like, that would be neat. also, the long ride is a good idea. You can just take a highway to the middle of nowhere and wait 'till he has to stop for gas and confront him at the pump.

Also, if you can have one of your buddies put a potato in his exhaust....

Do you have any friends with big cars? A friend of mine was being followed and 5 of his marine corps buddies did a rolling roadblock on the pursuing car. just have your buddies intercept you on a stretch of road. All your buddies race up, cut him off and slam on their breaks. Make sure you have some behind him so he can't reverse out of it. all it takes is 5 very good friends with some modest driving skills. also, if you have a nice one way alley, that's a perfect place to box him in.
 
39-13-605. Unlawful photographing in violation of privacy.

(a) It is an offense for a person to knowingly photograph or cause to be photographed an individual, when such individual is in a place where there is a reasonable expectation of privacy, without the prior effective consent of such individual, or in the case of a minor, without the prior effective consent of the minor's parent or guardian, if such photograph:

(1) Would offend or embarrass an ordinary person if such person appeared in the photograph; and

(2) Was taken for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification of the defendant.

(b) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires, "photograph" means any photograph or photographic reproduction, still or moving, or any videotape or live television transmission of any individual so that such individual is readily identifiable.

(c) All photographs taken in violation of this section shall be confiscated and, after their use as evidence, destroyed.

(d) (1) A violation of this section is a Class A misdemeanor.

(2) If the defendant disseminates or permits the dissemination of the photograph to any other person, a violation of this section is a Class E felony.

[Acts 1994, ch. 970, § 2; 1997, ch. 469, §§ 1, 2; 2000, ch. 667, § 2.]


what I could find in a pinch. I am still looking.
 
I'm a bit of a jerk sometimes, so please don't presume my advice to be rational or proper.

I'd go to the office of the firm following you and ask for a price qoute for their services. Tell them someone is following you, and you're hoping they can help you find out who it is and why they're following you. Present documentation containing their license plates and any photos, along with your research connecting those plates to the company.

"Oh, wow, you guys are really good. Maybe I can pay you $10? No, wait, that'd be a conflict of interest for you, wouldn't it, since you've been previously retained by someone to investigate me? So, would you like to answer the what, or what?"

I'd just want to see how they react. :)

The long backwoods trip might be fun, but take someone with you.
 
I like the idea of a rolling roadblock, however make sure that cooler heads prevail if you go the ambush route. It sounds like these jokers are not local, use some good calm freinds and you local knowledge to set up a good ambush, if they are dumb enough to keep folowing you after being made the are stupid enough to follow you right into a place of your choosing, at that point they might feel like telling you what they are doing, if the local police are being helpfull take advantage of that fact as well perhaps they would come and talk to these crack sleuths if you did lead them somewhere where they could be slowed down enough to allow the PD to get there, Whatever you do do not make any threats or brandish a weapon unless deadly force would be justified even then it would be advisable to disengage as it could be made to look very bad that you set up an ambush. one other thing if they are using a team you could quite possibly pick them up talking on a scanner if they are using frs or the color dot radios
 
Although it sure sounds cool, DO NOT do the rolling roadblock.

Being surrounded by five of your buddies in five cars creates a force disparity. The PIs, right or wrong, feel that their lives are in danger, and either freak out and run someone over, or draw their weapons.

Not good.

Keep brainstorming. Why you?

Look into stalking laws.

Call the agency.

DO NOT attempt a confrontation.
 
When I was a kid, a neighbor of mine was injured in an accident (she wasn't at fault) and had to wear a neck brace for a while. A P.I. staked out her house, presumably on the part of the insurance company. Her husband - usually a hothead - was smart, and sent one of his kids past the guy's car to see what he had.

When the kid reported seeing binoculars, they called the cops and reported a peeping tom, who was using binoculars to peer through windows.

Cops came and had some words with the guy - don't know exactly what was said - but they never saw him again.

For this case - every time you're followed, call the police on your cell phone, tell them you're being followed - no, that you're being stalked - RIGHT NOW, describe the car, and lead them to the police. If nothing else, this establishes a clear record of YOU being the offended party.
 
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