course description
This course is only available to Texas Private Investigators who are also certified Texas Process Servers. This course satisfies the additional 11 hours of continuing education required for private investigators that were not obtained in the 7 hour Texas process server class!
This course DOES NOT meet the 7 hours of continuing education required by the Texas Supreme Court to recertify Texas Process Servers.
"Skip tracing" is a term that refers to the process of finding a person whose whereabouts are unknown and is based upon the word "skip," which is often used to describe a subject who is believed to be "skipping out" on his or her duties and obligations- such as a debt or court appearance. Private investigators conduct missing persons investigations on behalf of a wide variety of client-types:
- Family members looking for long-lost relatives.
- Friends looking for persons with whom they lost touch many years ago.
- Attorneys looking for missing heirs in probate cases.
- Creditors looking for those who owe them money.
- A bail bondsman looking for a client who has failed to appear in court.
- An insurance company looking for a missing witness to an insured loss.
- A parent looking for their child who has run away or was abducted.
- Private Investigators looking for a scam artist or identity thief.
People are missing for a great number of reasons, but all typically fall into one of two categories, intentionally or unintentionally missing. This course is designed to teach and develop techniques that are required in even the most demanding skip tracing investigations. The course of instruction will introduce topics from determining the reason behind the subject's disappearance and the best methodologies employed to find each type, gathering required information through the use of traditional and creative investigative techniques as well as using information brokers or databases and brand new cutting edge Internet resources to the legal aspects of missing persons assignments and why it is a skip tracer's responsibility to ensure the safety of those he or she finds.
This course will also introduce and develop an awareness of the importance of ethics in the Private Investigation industry. Texas investigators must now have 2 hours of ethics and 2 hours of Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1702 with Texas Administrative Code 37 T.A.C. 35 included every licensing period in order to satisfy new state required continuing education requirements! The course of instruction meets those requirements.
This course is approved for 11 total hours of instruction in Texas and includes the required 2 hours of Ethics and 2 hours of Board Rules mandated by the Texas Private Security Board. An exam will be administered upon the conclusion of the program. If the candidate passes with a score of 75% or better, a certificate of completion will be issued in accordance with acceptable standards.
the author
L. Scott Harrell has been a professional investigator for over 17 years. He began a career in the intelligence and investigations tradecraft when selected to work with several intelligence units while serving our country in the United States Navy. Since his discharge, Scott has continued to apply the very special skills honed in the military through his own private investigation practice and service within the private security industry. Scott has worked with Fortune 500 companies, owned and managed two very successful agencies in Texas, Florida and Louisiana. He is also a noted speaker, mentor and author of ten (10) investigation-related books.
program outline
Skip Tracing (7 Hours)
- Introduction to Skip Tracing
- The Liability of Skip Tracing
- The Legality of Skip Tracing
- Important Personal Identifiers
- The Social Security Number
- Document Review and the Funnel Approach
- My Approach to Skip Tracing
- Skip Tracer's Checklist
- Your Own Powers of Observation
- Pretexting
- Pretext Scenarios and Examples
- Commercial Information Brokers and Database Sources
- Finding the Commercial Database Provider that is Best for You
- Real-time and Historical Telephone Information
- Motor Vehicle Registration and Licensing
- Phone Based Skip Tracing Systems
- Cosigners
- Field and Phone Interviews
- Understanding Public Records
- Public Records on the Internet
- Locating Military Members and Verifying Active Duty Status
- Understanding Military Addresses
- Finding Homeless People
- Heard it on the Grapevine- Miscellaneous Resources and Tips
- What to Do When You've Reached the Proverbial End of the Road
Industry Ethics and Board Rules for Texas Investigators (4 hours)
- Introduction to Industry Ethics
- Top Ten Reasons to Live a Life of Integrity
- P.A.L.I. Code of Ethics
- TX Occupations Code Chapter 1702- Private Security Act
- TX Administrative Code Title 37 Chapter 35- Private Security Bureau
- Industry Ethics Conclusion
