Be Your Own Private Investigator

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:38 am

i get a LOT of questions from my non-law enforcement friends, the public and even here at Forum Garden about how to protect ourselves against predators of all types. so i thought it might be helpful to offer some basic information i hope will be useful to someone reading here. you have the absolute right to any and all public information, i.e., criminal records and sex offenders registries. first, be an informed citizen in your state. go online and find your police or sheriff dept. website. it will give you the option of reading the wanted "posters" and the sex offenders registry. with booking photos. also, if you are considering renting to someone, call your local jail booking dept. and find out if they have a criminal record. you don't need to pay a PI to do this. but do have a birth date or SS number, the more info the better. if the booking dept. is busy, be polite and call back later. do not let them tell you they can't give the information. that's not true, it's just that booking gets slammed. this goes for prospective boyfriends or girlfriends. may sound less than romantic, but better to know the truth. i encourage people to check out those who may have access to their lives or children. it's not a leave-it-to-beaver world anymore, cons are everywhere... and PLEASE check out child caregivers and elderly caregivers. abuse of the elderly is RAMPANT! whether physical or financial abuse, they are particularly vulnerable.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 6:41 am

great Mary, thankyou! i have asked Beth to come and post sites also. anyone here, please contribute, this could be a valuable public service. i have also emailed and asked Carla to come and give us her expertise, she is very familiar with elderly issues. i am thinking this subject should possibly be a 'sticky'. we have many members who are not in the US, perhaps they could tell us how to go about it in their respective countries as well.

Beth · Post by **Beth** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 6:52 am

WWW.myflorida.com will provide info for any county in the state. The url is also now on our new, generic license plates.

URL to the Hillsborough County arrest inquiry.

Florida sexual predators database.

Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. You can explore links and find those with active warrants. Finding criminal history info in Hillsborough County.

Polk County Sheriff's Office. Go to the quick links and you can scroll to find the link to warrants, arrest records and sexual predators.

Pasco County Sheriff's Office.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 6:54 am

BETH, you're the greatest!! :yh_clap :yh_star :yh_flower

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 9:04 am

http://www.mipsor.state.mi.us/

There's the info for Michiganders.

Great idea LC. :yh_clap

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 9:10 am

Thankyou Babyrider, i hope this idea catches on and everyone pitches in, i am trying to imagine the good it (hopefully) could do

people can take back some control against criminals!

capt_buzzard · Post by **capt_buzzard** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 9:16 am

This is a great idea and thanks for bringing it up.

Beth · Post by **Beth** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 9:49 am

lady cop wrote: BETH, you're the greatest!! :yh_clap :yh_star :yh_flowerThanky much!:) I think this thread was a great idea. Many people don't know local resources for such things.

valerie · Post by **valerie** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 12:15 pm

I don't have any links right now but I just wanted to bring up something

I was made aware of sometime ago... any of you who are real estate agents,

be very careful about meeting clients at empty and or secluded houses.

Always tell another person where you are going (works for other situations

also!) and the name of the person you are meeting. Get I.D. if at all

possible.

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 2:25 pm

My area of knowledge deal with those with ALZHEIMER'S. If any of your loved ones have exhibiting early stages, or have been diagnoised with the disease. Please visit your areas WEBSITE. OR GO TO THE NATIONAL SITE http://www.alz.org. You then can find the chapter closes to you, there are chapters all over the WORLD. Please keep your elder loved ones safe from harm.

I also urge all of you to check in on your parents often. Have conservator ship signed, power of Attorney, and advanced directives in order.

Decide who will be in charge of what. ie: Money, food, clothes etc. Be very careful who you allow into your parents home. Have everyone checked out. All the chapter site have links, and resources to organizations that can help you. People with Alzheimers are child like, and very trusting. They will give there checkbook to anyone for no reason along with all the money they may have. You must protect them at all costs. They wander, so disable the car, get locks on the doors or consider a facility.

Caregiving for a loved one with Alzheimer's is as hard on you, as them. You need help please use the resources available to you.

For example: MEALS ON WHEELS IS A WONDERFUL ORGANIZATION. If you need meals that are made up and deilvered for an extremely fair price you can insure your loved one will eat. The other good thing about this organization is they become you eyes and ear as to how your love one is doing. They can report back to you any unusual things, or call the POLICE, or us, or protective services. They have been a help for us many times.

I strongly recommend getting a SAFE RETURN BRACELET for you loved one. It's a national program that gives you a bracelet, necklace, ankle bracelet whatever to place on your love on. This has saved lives..many, many, times.. You can get a grant for the cost which is $40 and not pay a dime. It is important to us as an organization to protect our elderly. Any one can get a bracelet Parkinson, ALZ, doesn't matter the dementia. JUST GET ONE. The elderly often get lost, then become confused, and become fearful and unable to talk. With this bracelet anyone can call the number on it, and immediately find out who they are.. AND GET THEM BACK TO YOU SAFELY.

Also if you see the elderly being abused in any way call the police, or you local adult protective services. They are trained to help patients with ALZ. If you suspect your elderly neighbor is not caring for themselve properly please enlist adult protective services. They will go out to the house, apartment and asses the situation.

IF YOU NEED ANY HELP WITH ANYTHING PLEASE CONTACT ME, I WILL HELP YOU.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 2:29 pm

EXCELLENT WONDERFUL ADVICE CARLA! :yh_clap :yh_flower :yh_hugs the elderly are so vulnerable to cons and thieves, as well as physical abuse, it is a huge issue here in florida. credentials of caregivers need to be checked out, and even an occupational license guarantees nothing, check criminal records.

valerie · Post by **valerie** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 2:42 pm

Quick way to disable a car that isn't hard to do and won't hurt the car

is to pull the distributor cap or a spark plug wire. We did this for my

Mom with Alzheimer's in order to let her retain some dignity when we

didn't want her driving any more, she could just say "Daddy needs to

fix my car, it won't start".

Works also when you are parking your car at a trail head and want to

insure it's there when you get back.

If you don't know what a distributor cap looks like, get someone you

trust to show you. (This is well before you would have need of the

knowledge!!)

:driving:

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:24 pm

another safety tip , especially for women traveling alone by car....you do not have to stop for a police vehicle. if you are not comfortable with the location or situation, SIGNAL the officer, whether it's a marked or unmarked unit, that you see him/her and intend to pull over, you are not evading. the officer will understand. then proceed to a well-lit or populated place and pull over.... and for anyone, when you are stopped, do not get out of the car, put both hands on the wheel where the officer can see them, and do not reach for glove box or anything else until officer asks for documents.

Peg · Post by **Peg** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:55 pm

http://www.ag.state.oh.us/index.asp This is the link to the Ohio attorney general website. It has the sex offender listings. Also linked to the site are http://www.missingkids.com/ The National center for missing and exploited children and http://www.mcc.ag.state.oh.us/ Ohio missing children clearinghouse.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 6:03 pm

Thankyou Peg! you never know who you may have helped! :yh_angel :yh_flower

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:38 pm

Here is a link the the national elder abuse hotline page. It give the number in your state. If you don't see your state call this number:Eldercare Locator at 1 (800) 677-1116. This site is excellent.

http://www.elderabusecenter.org/default ... tlines.cfm

Here is a link at the same site explaining what elder abuse is.

http://www.elderabusecenter.org/default.cfm?p=faqs.cfm

EXAMPLE OF A QUESTION FROM THE SITE.

What should I expect if I call someone for help?

When making the call, be ready to give the elder's name, address, contact information, and details about why you are concerned.

You may be asked a series of questions to gain more insight into the nature of the situation.

Are there any known medical problems (including confusion or memory loss)?

What kinds of family or social supports are there?

Have you seen or heard incidents of yelling, hitting, or other abusive behavior?

You will be asked for your name, address, telephone number, etc., but most states will take the report even if you do not identify yourself.

mominiowa · Post by **mominiowa** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 9:33 pm

This is the most amazing site - You are all wonderful people to put this stuff on here.. I did not know abou the sex offenders list until we moved into our new house..the lady that came to "Welcome" us to the neighborhood informed me there was an offender down the block and gave me the website to look at..It makes me think that if everyone cared as much as all of you - our kids and elderly for that matter would be much better off.. Thanks for creating this post...

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 10:00 pm

mominiowa wrote: This is the most amazing site - You are all wonderful people to put this stuff on here.. I did not know about the sex offenders list until we moved into our new house..the lady that came to "Welcome" us to the neighborhood informed me there was an offender down the block and gave me the website to look at..It makes me think that if everyone cared as much as all of you - our kids and elderly for that matter would be much better off.. Thanks for creating this post...thankyou for your support....i will tell you how this came about, i do AMBER alerts here often, even though this is really a lighthearted site, this is my "thing". so in the latest AMBER alert ,because of the huge response, it dawned on me that people need to know what their options and resources are, things i just take for granted. i have access to NCIC national crime database, and why shouldn't the public know where to go? i had so many pms that it was obvious there was a need for a crime-fighting thread. i am going to ask admin to make this a forum, or a sticky, everyone obviously has much to share that can be of serious help. if one person gains insight or real advice here, it's worth its bandwidth in gold. the credit goes to all who contribute, we can make a difference together.

capt_buzzard · Post by **capt_buzzard** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 10:03 pm

lady cop wrote: thankyou for your support....i will tell you how this came about, i do AMBER alerts here often, even though this is really a lighthearted site, this is my "thing". so in the latest AMBER alert ,because of the huge response, it dawned on me that people need to know what their options and resources are, things i just take for granted. i have access to NCIC national crime database, and why shouldn't the public know where to go? i had so many pms that it was obvious there was a need for a crime-fighting thread. i am going to ask admin to make this a forum, or a sticky, everyone obviously has much to share that can be of serious help. if one person gains insight or real advice here, it's worth its bandwidth in gold. the credit goes to all who contribute, we can make a difference together.Excellent Lady Cop

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sun Mar 06, 2005 11:13 am

if anyone here wants to investigate a person for criminal records, you don't need to pay someone to do it. you have seen many options here in this thread. i would like to add one....every state has a Dept. of Corrections website and inmate search function. they are public records. if you suspect someone, or need to check them out, google (name of state) DOC. then enter as much information as you have. you may also access mugshots/booking photos on the sites. happy investigating! :sneaky:

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Sun Mar 06, 2005 1:47 pm

petal wrote: hey ladycop dont think we can access public records here in scotland, or can we? i would be interested to know, if anyone knows the answer.

petal

:-6 if they are public , then by definition you can.

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Thu Apr 07, 2005 7:41 pm

lots of new people here, so if you can add a link to this thread, thanks! here's a good florida resource..... http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Fri May 20, 2005 7:45 pm

time to ressurect this thread.