Connecticut Private Investigator Offers Advice On How to Beat a Cheating Husband at His Own Game
A leading private investigator explains how many women are taking action to catch suspicious spouses in the act.
“Cheating husbands are still a hot topic in the media,” says Christopher Paoletti, Founder and President of Infidelity Investigations (http://www.infidelitypolice.com), a Connecticut private investigation firm that specializes in infidelity cases. “As a result, many women that have long suspected that their husbands were cheating are now taking steps to find out if their suspicions are true.”
According to Paoletti, the best way for a woman to determine if her husband is cheating is to collect as much evidence as possible.
“Gathering the necessary evidence of infidelity not only helps a wife to understand the true nature of her marriage,” says Paoletti, “but it is that evidence that will be necessary if divorce is a consideration.”
Paoletti says that it is the evidence of infidelity that can be critical to a women’s success in obtaining a fair settlement. Gaining factual, legally viable evidence of an affair, he says, is not only necessary, but it can give a woman an advantage.
“This is why hiring a professional private investigator to do the job is a good idea,” says Paoletti.
For the wife’s part, Paoletti suggests that she leave the evidence gathering to the professionals and keep a journal of any suspicious activity.
“Women seem to have a sixth sense about infidelity, so once a wife begins to suspect, they should start writing down those suspicions,” says Paoletti. “We tell our clients to give as much detail as possible about why they suspect that an affair is taking place and take notes that include any strange behavior with times, dates and observations.”
Paoletti suggests that the wife makes sure to keep the journal hidden by asking a friend to hold onto the journal for her.
“The longer that a woman is able to keep her suspicions a secret, the longer she will be able to garner evidence,” says Paoletti. “Letting the spouse know of any suspicions may cause him to change his routine, which makes gathering evidence harder. Of course, it is advisable to involve a professional private investigator as soon as possible, to be sure that all bases are covered.”
Established in 2001, Infidelity Investigations is a bonded, fully insured and licensed private investigation firm in the State of Connecticut, specializing in infidelity investigations, surveillance, background investigations, attorney investigation services, and GPS tracking. For more information, call 203-268-6319 or visit www.infidelitypolice.com.
Last month’s deadly Lake Street fire was an accident, but investigators couldn’t find the cause. Private investigators will take over now.
The fast-moving fire that killed six people in a Minneapolis apartment on April 2 was an accident, not a criminal act, but local and state fire investigators couldn’t determine how it started.
The official cause of “undetermined” in the city’s deadliest fire in a quarter century came Tuesday after weeks of investigation of the gutted apartments at 3001 E. Lake St. and laboratory analysis of evidence. Minneapolis police said little else about what investigators learned, but they said the finding marks the end of the active government probe.
Still, private investigators hired by attorneys will continue the inquiry and may ultimately reveal how a fire flared up in a corner apartment and killed the tenant and five guests. Fire investigation experts say it’s typical for investigators working for insurance companies, victims and other private parties to take over after suspicious causes are ruled out.
Minneapolis police Sgt. Bill Palmer said that no accelerants — one indicator of arson — were found in the area where the fire started. Last month, the fire department said the fire broke out in the second-floor apartment of Ryan Richner, a bartender who worked in McMahon’s Irish Pub on the first floor.
Also killed were Andrew Gervais, his three children and his mother, Anne Gervais; all were staying overnight in Richner’s apartment.
Denise Schmidt of Long Prairie, Richner’s mother, was deeply disappointed with the failure to determine a cause.
“I need a reason or something to focus my anger,” Schmidt said. “Why did it happen? Why did my son die? Why is the Gervais family gone? It would be nice to have a reason.” Her son’s funeral was Friday.
The Hennepin County Medical Examiner found that Anne Gervais died of smoke inhalation and the others died from smoke inhalation and burns. The building owner and families of the deceased all retained lawyers as part of the private investigation.
Source
Patient privacy is no doubt paramount in any physician practice. But when a subpoena suddenly is thrust into the physician-patient relationship, doctors may find themselves caught between the law and their privacy obligations.
The Cleveland Clinic in Ohio found itself in such a predicament when it agreed to turn over a patient’s records in response to a grand jury subpoena in a criminal investigation.
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, in a Feb. 1 ruling, said that more stringent state privacy standards superseded the hospital’s obligations to comply with the subpoena and related disclosure requirements under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The ruling allows a patient to sue the hospital for invading his privacy.
The Cleveland Clinic declined to comment for this article.
The subpoena request was prompted by a criminal investigation of James Turk, a private investigator and former police officer who was indicted in June 2007 for carrying a concealed weapon and having it despite an alleged drug and alcohol dependency, according to court records.
Turk denied wrongdoing, and a jury acquitted him of some of the weapon charges in November 2008, while other claims were dropped.
As part of the criminal proceedings, the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas, on behalf of the police department, issued a grand jury subpoena to Cleveland Clinic for Turk’s medical records. The request included information about any treatment for drug or alcohol abuse as well as any mental health counseling Turk had received.
The hospital complied with the subpoena and turned over the information to a police officer involved in the case. That prompted Turk to file suit against the Cleveland Clinic in 2009, claiming the hospital invaded his privacy and negligently disclosed his private medical information without proper authorization.
Turk alleged primarily that the release of his confidential records violated the state’s physician-patient privilege statute, which, with limited exception, protects medical information from public disclosure without patient consent.
But the Cleveland Clinic argued in court documents that the case should be dismissed because the clinic was responding to a grand jury subpoena.
Because such proceedings are conducted in secret and any information shared is kept confidential, the hospital said its production of Turk’s records did not constitute a public disclosure that violated the physician-patient privilege.
The Cleveland Clinic also contended that the records were necessary to further the state’s interest in fighting criminal activity.
Furthermore, the hospital pointed to a specific exception under HIPAA authorizing the disclosure of a patient’s medical records in response to a grand jury subpoena.
No exception
But the court was not persuaded, saying Ohio’s privilege statute contained no such exception. The court refused to dismiss the case, which could go to trial. The case likely will proceed in federal court because it involved a mix of state and federal issues related to Turk’s arrest.
U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen M. O’Malley noted that the state law did include limited exemptions allowing law enforcement in certain circumstances to obtain private patient information as a part of criminal investigations. That could be allowed, for example, if the case was against a physician or to get test results to determine the presence of drugs or alcohol in a patient’s blood.
The privilege statute also permits disclosure if:
* The patient or a guardian gives consent.
* The lawsuit is filed by the patient.
* The action involves court-ordered treatment.
Otherwise, it was up to the Legislature, not the courts, to create any additional exceptions to the privilege protections, O’Malley said, adding that the Ohio Supreme Court has repeatedly refused to do so.
As for HIPAA, the court recognized that the federal privacy statute does explicitly authorize the release of patients’ medical records in response to a grand jury subpoena, as well as other law enforcement requests.
But it also noted that the federal law does not preempt more stringent state standards. Because Ohio’s privacy protections — which did not allow for grand jury disclosures — were broader than those mandated by HIPAA, the state law prevailed, the district court found.
The judge added that both the state’s interest in investigating criminal activity and patients’ interests in medical records privacy were worthy of protection. But “if the right of confidentiality is to mean anything, an individual must be able to direct the disclosure of his or her own private information,” the court said, citing earlier Ohio court precedent.
Because Turk was given no notice of the grand jury subpoena, however, he had no chance to object or respond in any way to the records request, the judge noted. Nor was there any attempt to narrowly tailor the inquiry to the scope of the criminal charges.
The court concluded that the state’s interests were not enough to outweigh Turk’s privacy rights.
“While it may be more efficient for a grand jury to be permitted to obtain an individual’s medical records … giving law enforcement unbridled access to medical records could discourage patients from seeking medical treatment,” O’Malley wrote.
Legal experts said the case is an important wake-up call for physicians who may think they are doing the right thing when law enforcement comes knocking, and they warn that doctors should take note of the interplay between state and federal law.
“HIPAA sets a floor, not a ceiling, and this case is a classic example of that principle,” said Peter Leininger, a health care lawyer in Fulbright & Jaworski LLP’s Washington, D.C., office. “You’ve got to check state law, too. Simply complying with HIPAA is not always going to be enough.”
State and federal privacy laws vary as to what types of medical information can be disclosed and when, said D.C.-based health privacy lawyer Marion K. Goldberg. But such statutes generally strive to find a balance between impeding a lawsuit and protecting patient privacy.
State law may specify, for example, that certain sensitive information related to drug or sexual abuse or HIV status generally remain privileged, said Goldberg, a partner with Winston & Strawn LLP. But if there is an ongoing crime, such as domestic violence, or an impending danger, documents that are otherwise off limits may be accessible.
State laws also may have different definitions as to what constitutes medical information, Goldberg said. She noted, for example, that the Ohio court found no privacy violation when the Cleveland Clinic gave police only the names of Turk’s doctors, before the subpoena for more detailed information was issued. The court said state law did not consider names to be privileged medical information.
However, disclosing even names “may be enough to create an issue under HIPAA,” Goldberg said. “Suppose the name of the doctor they gave out was a psychiatrist … or a subspecialist in drug and alcohol abuse. Wouldn’t that tell us something?”
If doctors are faced with a disclosure request, “as a caution, you have to look at the type of record being subpoenaed and what state and federal laws are regarding that type of record. Then you have to comply,” Goldberg said.
What doctors cannot do is ignore it, experts warned. Violating a subpoena or court order carries penalties, they said, ranging from contempt of court to fines, even jail time.
On the other hand, state law may permit patients to sue over improper disclosures, Goldberg said. While HIPAA precludes such private actions, it does allow patients to complain to the government, which can impose financial penalties for privacy breaches, she added.
But physicians also have the right to contest a records request on behalf of their patients or to ask a judge for further clarification, experts said.
There are ways to work with the courts or parties involved to alleviate confidentiality concerns, while providing the information sought, Leininger said. For example, state law may prohibit certain disclosures under a broad subpoena, but allow for a more limited, protective court order.
Nevertheless, when in doubt, consult a lawyer, Goldberg said, “because you can get caught, and that’s really the lesson in this.”
Source
I honestly believe that the universe allows every human being the opportunity to give one person the finger 
consequence free. Needless to say, this isn’t one of them.
A guy facing assault charges gave his judge the finger (yes that finger), according to the Daily Herald.
The judge asked him to raise his right hand to be sworn into the court and the defendant responded with his middle finger. The only way this guy could be dumber is if he used his left hand.
He also cursed at the judge, so the judge threw a contempt of court charge at him and gave him six extra months in prison where middle fingers have more uses than you might think.
Summer is just around the corner and that means families will reignite their love and affection for one another by piling into a small American car and driving 500 miles without working air conditioning in 2,000 degree heat to a place designed to suck more money out of their pockets that some kind of money sucking vacuum.
But don’t fret. Some families have learned how to recoup their lawsuits against amusement parks by filing some strange lawsuits. The Orlando Sentinel compiled some of the stranger suits filed against parks from their neck of the woods.
One attendee of the Magic Kingdom claimed he was falsely arrested when he “joked” about having a bomb in his bags. So thank this man, America. From now on, everyone going to Disneyworld will have to undergo a full cavity search.
Another man at Disneyworld claimed an employee told him he was standing in the wrong line, fainted from humiliation and injured himself from the fall. I wonder if the same thing happened to him when his lawsuit hit the newspapers.
Melbourne, April 26 (ANI): Social networking sites like Facebook are being used by private investigators to uncover false claims made to insurance companies.
International experts have revealed that the sites are ‘gold’ for identity thieves, reports Courier Mail. 
They are perusing photos and comments made on the sites of claimants and witnesses to see if they tally with statements made to insurance companies.
In some cases investigators are uncovering photos showing people who claim to have injuries preventing them from working doing activities such as skiing.
But sites such as Facebook also have become a tool for investigators to uncover people doing undeclared jobs, to track down those who owe debts and uncover the shady past of job applicants.
Investigation firm MPOL Investigations Australia has an agent dedicated to searching the social networking sites.
Using a social networking site, the company discovered that a claimant who was suspected of having undeclared income did have a hidden part-time job.
While the Facebook site had a privacy block, the investigators were able to search an open “friend” site, which provided a clear link to their subject.
The investigation firm used photos on a social networking site to prove that people who claimed their home had been broken into were at home at the time, having a party.
Julia Robson, the company’s social networking specialist, said one person claiming to have a foot injury posted family pictures showing him playing soccer.
Craig Adams of Brisbane’s CA Investigations said information gleaned from social networking sites mostly was used to gauge how much people exaggerated their claims.
He said in one case a woman who claimed she had a psychological injury and could not socialise, posted Facebook photos of herself sitting in bars on Melbourne Cup Day. (ANI)
Edward Herdich
But he’s helped reunite parents with their runaway children, exposed people lying on workers’ compensation cases and even spent four months on a company bowling team to build trust so he could root out workplace crime.
The 48-year-old Elgin man and private investigator shared anecdotes and dispelled some myths about the work of detectives on Sunday afternoon while promoting his book, “Private Investigation: A Guide for the Beginner,” at Books At Sunset in Elgin.
“It’s not always like Agatha Christie where you have high friends in high places to help you along the way,” said Herdrich.
He described his book as a general reader about how to get started pursuing a career in the field. The book also contains real-life stories about some of the cases during his 19-year career.
He specializes in fraud investigations, criminal defense and locations, such as finding runaways or the birth parents of clients who were adopted.
Herdrich, who has taught continuing education classes on private investigation at Elgin Community College for five years and Harper College in Palatine for three years, said he doesn’t like to do surveillance work because it’s time consuming and he can only focus on one case.
He likes “the puzzle” behind location-type cases.
“Communication skills are so important in this industry because you don’t know who you’re going to have to talk to to get information,” he said. “A good private detective is the first person to arrive, the last person to leave and the person nobody remembers that much about.”
Herdrich said private investigators in Illinois must be licensed by the state, but there is no formal college program to earn a degree to become a detective.
A lot of investigators have military or law enforcement backgrounds, but it’s not essential. Future private eyes must work several years for a licensed investigator and later pass a state test.
“There’s no real education. I’d like to see that changed,” he said.
Herdrich is slated to speak again at 2 p.m. April 25 at Books at Sunset, 1100 South St. For more information, call (847) 888-1868.
Source
At the World Investigators Conference in Dallas, Rhonda Hines inspects a device that can detect hidden cameras. Some 600 private detectives from around the world attended.
DALLAS — Let’s say you’re a private investigator, and your client wants to get the goods on that philandering spouse.
You could do it the old-fashioned way, trailing him (or her) all over town.
Or, for $695, you could buy a GPS Personal Asset Tracker and hide it under the bumper of the subject’s car. Then you could sit back in your office, turn on the computer and, via a secure Web site, get the location of every place Cheatin’ Heart goes.
“It works in real time so if they’re in a bar or at someone’s house, you can show up,” said Cody Woods, a private investigator and manager of the Spy Exchange & Security Center in Austin, Texas.
Technology is one of many factors changing the P.I. business, and nowhere was that more evident than at the recent World Investigators Conference in Dallas. Some 600 gumshoes from as far away as Thailand were on hand to learn about the latest gizmos and services for “getting the competitive edge” in a down economy, as one speaker put it.
Woods’ booth, for example, featured a cornucopia of surveillance gear, including $10 sunglasses that enable the wearer to see behind him. Or for $195, P.I.s can surreptitiously photograph a subject with tiny cameras hidden in everything from belt buckles and baseball caps to pens, watches, flashlights and key chains.
“People know cameras are in cell phones and might be a little wary,” Woods said, “but who’s going to think about a camera in a key chain? You can take a key chain anywhere.”
The three-day conference was partly sponsored by TLO, the Boca Raton company whose corporate slogan is “lightning in a bottle.” TLO founder Hank Asher developed Accurint, a database used by investigators to find people, and a highlight of the conference was to be Asher’s unveiling of a supposedly superior new product called Accurint Killer.
But there was no demonstration.
“The lightning isn’t quite in the bottle,” said Asher, who was accompanied to Dallas by most of his management team, including former Florida Attorney General Bob Butterworth.
Nonetheless, the crowd had plenty to take in.
Since Eugene Francois Vidocq became the world’s first private detective in the 1800s, tracking fraudsters around France, the P.I. business has grown ever-more specialized. At a book stall, conference participants could browse scores of titles ranging from Practical Homicide Investigations to Kidnap for Ransom to Financial Investigation and Forensic Accounting (Second edition).
“One reason P.I.s come here is to find other things to do,” said James Jessel of Signal Auditing.
His New York-based company is hired by DirecTV, a satellite service, to find bars and restaurants that show non-network National Football League games without paying for them. Signal Auditing in turn hires local private eyes to ferret out scofflaws.
“If we have somebody in Gainesville, they can access the legal list (of DirecTV) customers and know what restaurant is paying the legal rates,” Jessel said.
Darren McCulley’s specialty is more traditional. He does “fugitive recovery,” but the job has become easier thanks to Google and Web sites like Facebook and MySpace where even crooks post personal information.
“You could spend six months in a car or you could jump online and do a little profiling with social network sites,” said McCulley, a Dallas P.I. who recently found a notorious parole violator. “I think human nature is to want people to know what they’re doing.”
For P.I.s who need help navigating such sites, a Hernando County company, Tracers of Spring Hill, was touting its latest product: “Social Network Profile Search.”
The new service, which costs $2 (“no hit, no fee”) identifies the actual owner or user of a specific e-mail address and also finds Web postings, pictures, personal details, family, friends and more.
“I call it the George Orwell Search — a little 1984,” said Sarah Dyer of Tracers. “It implies Big Brother is watching you, but actually this is information that’s out there.”
The economy has taken its toll on private investigators, with thousands nationwide said to have dropped out of the business in the past few years. While the number of repossession agents in Florida is up, the number of P.I.s. has remained flat at about 7,900.
“The fact this hasn’t grown in a state where we’re used to occupations growing says something,” notes Terence McElroy, a spokesman for Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs, which regulates private investigators.
Private eyes have long been popular in literature (Sherlock Holmes), movies (Sam Spade) and on television (Peter Gunn, the Rockford Files). Judging from the conference crowd, it remains a field dominated by men, many of them military veterans or former law enforcement officers.
But P.I.s of both genders have a disdain for one staple of the trade — spending long hours parked across from a No-Tel Motel, hoping to catch an unfaithful spouse.
“Surveillance is so ugly. I just hate it; I always did,” said Dana Miller, a Denton, Texas, investigator for 20 years. “It’s always raining or snowing or you’ve got to pee. That’s the hardest part for women.”…
Source
- Be a presence, but not overwhelming.
- Conduct audits quarterly. Even in the best run companies, mistakes happen. Regular audits help control the checks and balances.
- Routinely review returns, financial statements, journals, etc. Ensure all the proper information is filled in completely. Never be afraid to ask questions and control the response time to answers.
- Be knowledgeable of every facet of your business better than your most experienced employees. Never act like your too good for any job. Take time to work side by side with your employees frequently at every job position.
- Make it a practice to always be the one to sign the checks. Never hand any employee a blank check (even someone you trust). Understand that everyone goes through hard times. Simply provoking opportunity leads to disaster.
- Follow your gut. If you believe something is wrong, you’re probably right. Don’t wait too long to investigate for information is often subverted shortly after a theft.
- Adequate supervision but no hovering.
- Monitor workload by giving specific tasks and duties.
- Keep up morale by having weekly staff meetings and confronting complaints.
- Holding a balanced authority between employee and supervisors. Keeping personal business out of the workplace.
- Have a healthy work environment. Prepare an open lunch and fitness program such as yoga or cardio at noon to renew energy throughout the day and improve morale.
