What Are The Boundaries of Legal Surveillance
2/12/2018
Recently, a client came to us and wanted help bugging her home and phone lines to catch her spouse cheating. We explained that there is a law preventing those types of actions and what kind of trouble she could face if it ever came out that she had done this. The client didn't believe what we were telling her and decided to take matters into her own hands. Although we would not help her bug her home, she still had Discreet Investigation Service conduct physical surveillance on her husband to gather additional evidence. Unfortunately, not taking our professional advice against bugging her home is what ended up destroying this client’s case. The following is an example of why you need to hire a knowledgeable, professional investigation agency and not base your choice simply on price or by what the Internet may say.
Shortly after our agency refused to help the aforementioned client bug her home with listening devices and cameras, the client took to the Internet and found a spy shop that was run by a licensed private investigator; this investigator told the client that our agency was wrong and that she could certainly set up listing devices and cameras in her home. She proceeded to spend a lot of money buying equipment from his store and installed it in her home. It didn't take long for her new equipment to gather all the information she wanted within the home. She immediately forwarded the information to her lawyer and they prepared for the divorce trial, as neither side would agree on a settlement.
That trial never came. During the depositions, the illegal surveillance information came out, as well as how she obtained this evidence; her husband's lawyer stopped the deposition and offered that if she accepted the settlement her husband wanted, they would not pursue criminal charges for all the privacy laws she broke when she bugged her home. She had no choice but to accept.
This is just one example of when professional opinion is very valuable. Just because you read something on the Internet it does not make it true, legal, or possible. Unfortunately, there are many investigators out there who will say and do anything to make money on a case, regardless of whether it is possible or legal. On the other end of the spectrum, there are investigators out there who simply lack experience and may accidentally agree to performing something it is not ok to do. The client is also at fault in this scenario, as she pursued an illegal action that hurt her own case simply because she did not like the first answer she received.
It’s important to make sure you hire an agency that has been around long enough to really know what is true and legal and what will help you get the best outcome for your case.