Be Diligent, You Might Get Something
It was 2011, and I had not had my Private detective license all that long. I had been running a boutique limo service during the day, and getting surveillance work at night, and on weekends. I kept my suit, extra shirt, and surveillance clothes with me all the time in the trunk always ready to switch hats. I intend to speak about diligence, as it is a key part of my core beliefs. Along with that, coffee!
I would wake up most mornings at 4am, showered and ready to pick up my first client at 5:30am. Go to the airport, drop off, pick up the next at 6:30am, drop and do one more. After that, my inbound clients would begin to arrive. Pick Up and Drop Off. By now it's 11am or so, I changed into “detective” mode and went to my assignment. Juggling switching roles went on for just over a year.
I wanted this career, I love this career, I was going to be as purposeful and determined as I could be. Always ready. Diligent.
July 2011. Independence Day weekend actually, the way I remember is that it was one of the hottest summers we had seen in a long time. I had finished my limo runs and began on this case along with 5-6 other detectives. We had been assigned to observe an individual who had made a medical malpractice suit against a doctor, claiming that the procedure had damaged the nerves in his right arm which ultimately hindered him in having full range of motion and functionality. His wife also filed claiming Loss of Consortium, ie, loss of affection, relationship and/or the personal companionship of a husband and wife.
The team was running in rotation during 12-16 hour days. My rotation was on Friday afternoon, through the weekend. The detective I worked with, Scott, is very skilled and still remains a great colleague today. The Sunday of our weekend started quiet, as we followed the subject, he went to the store for coffee, went to church (alone, which we scratched our heads to, however he left alone, so...). We continued the surveillance back towards the residence when he stopped for what we thought was take out at the local Mexican Restaurant.
We waited…..waited...waited some more. Finally we thought, what's going on?
The unexpected was unfolding, we expected him to go in, get his food and return to the house. We could have just sat there in the parking lot waiting or assuming he was alone, yet it's when the unexpected occurs, you want a private detective to be prepared for that. Our diligence paid off in the recognition that something wasn't quite right. Being aware that it shouldn't take 20 minutes to order and get food, we decided that one of us would go in. I grabbed a cell phone, which is actually a camera that is designed like a cell phone, walked in, looked around and BAM. Girlfriend.
Holding hands (right arm), dipping chips into salsa (right arm), lifting up one of those mega sized amber plastic cups you find in these restaurants (right arm) was the man we had been following. He was claiming loss of use with his right arm, and to have captured that interaction with his Girlfriend on video sweetened the pot. It was a totally different slant to what we were set out to observe. I contacted my partner via text, and asked him to set up near the target vehicle, because something was about to go down. Our diligence paid off. He walked the new girlfriend to the car, smiled, warmly embraced her and kissed her goodbye. I’m not gonna lie, this development in the case was awesome.
As detectives we prepare all the time, with our equipment, or set ups, the advanced work and the skills it takes to sit in a boiling hot car for 15 hours on the hottest weekend of the year. Being diligent in all areas grants us the success we, as private investigators, strive to achieve and the results the client needs and paid for.
He ended up losing his case, and you can only imagine that the wife did too.