NCJ Number
132908
Date Published
1991
Length
132 pages
Annotation
This presentation of state-of-the-art investigative materials and methods for private investigators may be used as a basic text for classroom study required by most States for certification or licensing, as a manual for field work and as a refresher course for veteran investigators, and as a reference for anyone interested in the field.
Abstract
The first chapter examines the history of private investigation and the nature of the work. State licensing regulations and a code of ethics are also addressed. A chapter on law and courts profiles the nature of Federal, State, and local courts and provides guidelines for selecting a court for case processing. Both civil and criminal legal procedures are discussed. The courts' view of the private investigator's use of deadly force and nonlethal weapons is considered as well. A chapter on surveillance and security covers visual surveillance, both fixed and mobile; undercover work; detection tactics; optics; videotaping; "still" cameras; audiotaping; electronics; theft; and terrorism. A discussion of human behavior encompasses genetics and appearance, thinking and memory, emotions, psychosocial factors, personality, behaviorism, humanism, needs, life stages, neurotic needs, and the criminal mind. The concluding chapter on investigation and reporting covers information sources, social security locator numbers, the development of contacts, interview and interrogation, entrapment, body language, deception and lying, evidence and proof, and written reports. Appended print and audiovisual resources, 58 references, and a subject index