California - Texas - Florida - legislation and courts

Current topics I'm tracking at PI buzz (http://pibuzz.com), my new blog site:

California and Texas follow the lead of other states criminalizing sales of telephone subscriber data
By Tamara Thompson

The California legislature, adding its imprint to a politician’s dream issue, is considering Assembly Bill 2838, “an act to add Section 530.1 to the Penal Code, and to amend Section 2891 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to telephone records.”

California divorce records under fire
By Tamara Thompson

An earlier attempt to seal California divorce records was dashed by an appellate court but a revised version is on the legeslative fast track, according to a report in the San Diego Union-Tribune.

EPIC challenges attorneys’ use of private investigators

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Visit our new site at PIbuzz.com

PI News Link is now posting at our new site, PI buzz. If you've been linking to PI News Link would you please adjust that link to reflect the change?

At PIbuzz I'll continue writing about the state of public records, personal information databases, electronic access to records, privacy and legislation of interest to private investigators, lawyers, librarians and journalists.

Go to PI buzz and add your email address in the subscribe area or get the site updates in your newsreader.

Thanks for continuing to read.

Tamara Thompson

PI News Link gets a new home at PI buzz

Gentle readers, lend me your eyes. PI News Link is now posting at our new site, PI buzz, where I'll continue writing about the state of public records, personal information databases, electronic access to records, privacy and legislation of interest to private investigators, lawyers, librarians and journalists.

Go to PI buzz and add your email address in the subscribe area or get the site updates in your newsreader.

We're encouraging comments to the posts and I always welcome your thoughts on site improvements or topics you'd like me to explore. Email me at: pinewslink@gmail.com.

Federal Legislation Is Proposed To Criminalize Seeking or Selling Telephone Data

Legislation that would criminalize obtaining, selling or, under some circumstances, possessing, telephone customer information, has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. Law Enforcement and Phone Privacy Protection Act of 2006, H.R. 4709 would, "amend title 18, United States Code, to strengthen protections for law enforcement officers and the public by providing criminal penalties for the fraudulent acquisition or unauthorized disclosure of phone records." Phone records that are linked to subscribers include their call history -telephone calls made on that phone line- but also just the subscriber name and address.

The ostensible reason for the blanket prohibition, which does not exempt anyone other than law enforcement, is because disclosure

"...not only assaults individual privacy but, in some instances, may further acts of domestic violence, compromise the personal safety of law enforcement officers, their families, or confidential informants, and undermine the integrity of law enforcement investigations."

I haven't seen any media reports that cite instances of law enforcement safety or investigations being compromised. I imagine the people who access records for that reason aren't going to be too concerned about the 5 years they could get in the can.

Will lawyers stand behind the legal use of telephone data?

A second article has been published by law.com pointing the finger at attorneys as the primary purchasers of telephone subscriber information. Will Lawyers Get Hung Up In Quest for Cell Phone Records?, suggests that the litigation by state Attorneys General and impending state and federal legislation may be rattling the cage of many lawyers. Unfortunately the article misses the opportunity to detail the legal and appropriate uses by law firms of telephone subscriber data, which I mentioned in a prior post on government regulation.

In fact, the author had difficulty getting lawyers to talk to her, even though the practice does not violate the law. And, according to law professor Harold Krent, purchasing cell phone records is not an ethical breach.

"Are cell phone records private? We probably all assumed that they were, but the answer is probably to the contrary. We probably have some privacy interest but it's not protected by common law or statute," said Harold J. Krent, dean of the Chicago-Kent College of Law. Krent noted that given the vagueness of the law, attorneys who obtain cell phone records via the Internet are not doing anything illegal or unethical.

Former D.C. private investigator, now privacy consultant, Robert Douglas gets some ink because of his active assistance to the federal government identifying cell phone subscriber data purveyors that operate on the Internet. His testimony before a U.S. House hearing, and that of others giving testimony are collected at the law.com site.

Search Real Estate By Address

Search real property profiles at zillow.com, a free Internet site that is searchable by street address. Search results include a satellite map, home value, square footage, date of last sale and comparable homes. This database lists all homes in the counties covered, not just properties for sale.

Law firms hire private investigators in-house

Private investigators and law firms are stirring over the recent Law.com article, Private Investigators Go In-House At Law Firms, a discussion of the practice of some law offices hiring staff investigators, mostly former federal government law enforcement agents. The attorneys interviewed site cost savings to their clients as a motivation, but also the increased quality of the overall product "because they will work closely with the firm's attorneys on litigation and have a better handle on the information that's needed." That's a key tip for all investigators, whether we're working in-house or on a contract. There are a few thoughts I try to keep in mind.

- Often the attorney doesn't know that there's a unmined wealth of information in their own files, which should be culled before launching your investigation.

- Communicate frequently and in detail with your client. A regular exchange of findings can advance the case. Verbal discussions are essential because many times the attorney doesn't thoroughly read our written reports; she may have breaking news that needs to be conveyed. Make it convenient for her by calling often.

Don't paper your attorney to cover shortfalls in your findings. Explain the work you did and the obstacles -including legal barriers to obtaining some types of data. You might also consider marketing a more specific investigative specialty rather than presenting a list of a dozen types of work you can do. Investigators take pride in our talents as generalists but you may get more of the type of work you want if you define it more particularly. Various clients will speak of me as the "Internet researcher" or "the PI who can find anyone." These tags are more tailored to the client's immediate need.

Nader Anise, an attorney marketer has some other suggestions for ways the private investigator can work with law firms that are employing PIs.

New Jersey real property records may be restricted

Legislation proposed by New Jersey state Senator Ron Rice could obstruct the public access to real property records, according to this report by the Newhouse News Service. The bill would require everyone, except real estate agents or the property owner, to submit a formal public records request in order to receive property profiles. This restriction could interfere with obtaining property information online, where the proof of identity is more difficult to verify.

Find a name from a telephone number

Free reverse telephone lookup is being offered by Merlindata, for subscribers, through February 17. Enter a telephone number to get the name or address of the subscriber.

~ phone records debate in US Senate to be webcast ~

Protecting Consumers' Phone Records is the topic of the U.S. Senate Consumer Affairs, Product Safety, and Insurance subcommittee webcast on Wednesday, February 8, 2006. Needless to say, the witness list isn't balanced; all of those testifying are expected to argue that selling or obtaining consumer telephone records should be criminalized.

The hearing will examine unauthorized third party access to phone records, potential legislative solutions, and will assess the proper roles of the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission.

More Hearings in Congress on sale of phone records

The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce Hearing, Evidence of Records and Practices Sought From Websites that Sell Private Cell Phone Records, held Wednesday February 1, 2006, opened an investigation into the retail sales of customer telephone records. The Committee press release includes the letters sent to Steven Schwartz, director of First Source Information Specialists, Inc., and Patrick Baird, director of PDJ Services, which demand a list of the customers who have used their service.

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation website lists the panel that will assemble at its February 8 hearing, Protecting Consumers' Phone Records.

PI opinion on phone pretexts

The San Francisco Chronicle has published an honest opinion piece on the use of telephone subscriber information and pretexts by private investigators, submitted by our own, Mike Spencer, a PI out of Oakland, California.

Ohio AG confirms that court record financial information is a public record

The Ohio Attorney General has issued an opinion that financial information in court files is a public record. Read all about it at the Ohio Sunshine Project.

Oklahoma may create a meth offenders database

Oklahoma legislators envision an online database of individuals convicted of possession of methamphetamines, much like the existing one in Tennessee.

Michigan makes non conviction arrests a public record

The Michigan news site, The Daily Telegram, reports that the Michigan State Police has made additional criminal history information the public at its website.

A new state law provides that all criminal history information associated with a state identification number and supported by fingerprints shall be disseminated in response to a fingerprint- or name-based search of the state's criminal history record database, a statement released Friday by the Michigan State Police said. Information that previously would not have been released includes arrest information even if the charge or judicial portion is not yet available. Currently only criminal records containing convictions are available.

Intelius dumps its private investigator site

The short lived effort by the personal data retailer Intelius to break into the private investigator market has come to an abrupt end. Intelius' primary market is the general public. It appears that the profit margins for the PI side of the business didn't warrant continued tailored service to the investigations industry. The Company notified subscribers in a recent email.

As of January 31st, 2006, all Intelius PI accounts and the invoice billing system will be closed. To better serve our clients, special volume discounts for those in the investigation industry will become part of our regular Intelius service.

The PI.Intelius site never quite took off and was plagued with a substandard interface, and insufficient pricing and data source information -features that PIs have come to expect to be clear upfront. Thankfully, all of the data PI.Intelius offered is available through other vendors.