Investigations
Surveillance
Observation of a person, a vehicle or a location over time, documented as it happens by investigators who do not look like investigators.
- #1 Private Investigator in Texas
- Texas License #12818
- Twenty-five years of experience
- Marine veteran owned
- Statewide Texas coverage
- Free confidential consultation
What this is
Surveillance, in plain terms.
Surveillance is the oldest thing in this business and the most misunderstood. It is not a car chase. It is sitting still for six hours in a place nobody looks twice at, and being ready for the ninety seconds that matter. The skill is in the preparation and in being boring.
The gear has changed and that is the real story. An investigator standing in a hotel lobby with a long lens is noticed inside a minute. An investigator apparently checking messages is not noticed at all. Everything we use now is the equipment everyone else in the room is already holding, which is exactly why it works.
The work
What actually gets done.
- Pre-surveillance work: routes, vantage points, patterns of life, and what a normal day at that address looks like.
- Static surveillance from a position that does not attract attention.
- Mobile surveillance, single or multi-investigator depending on how difficult the subject is to follow.
- Photographic and video documentation from public places only.
- A contemporaneous log, written as events happen, with times and locations.
- Honest reporting of the hours where nothing happened, because a gap in a log is what a good cross-examination looks for.
Investigations
Documented, or it did not happen.
An observation nobody wrote down at the time is a memory. Every hour is logged as it happens, with times and locations, including the hours where nothing occurred.
What you get
At the end of it.
- A chronological surveillance log for every hour worked.
- Unedited stills and video with capture times.
- A written summary of what the observation established.
- A recommendation on whether further surveillance is worth your money.
When people call
The three situations we hear most.
You need to know what somebody actually does
Accounts differ. Behavior over several days does not. Surveillance is how an account becomes a record.
A claim or a story needs testing
An injury claim, an alibi, a stated work schedule. Observation either supports it or it does not.
You have one chance to get it right
Some subjects only have to notice a follower once. That is an argument for a planned operation rather than an improvised one.
Questions
About this service.
Is surveillance legal in Texas?
Observing and photographing a person in a public place, where there is no reasonable expectation of privacy, is lawful. Trespassing, entering a residence, recording a private conversation you are not part of, and installing a camera or a listening device in a private space are not. We work entirely on the lawful side of that line.
How many investigators do you use?
It depends on the subject. A predictable subject on a fixed route can be a one-investigator job. A subject who is alert, who counter-surveils, or who moves through heavy traffic may need more, and we will tell you that up front rather than burn a day and fail.
What if nothing happens?
Sometimes nothing happens, and the report will say so. An honest empty log is itself information, and we would rather hand you one than pad a file.
Is the first conversation really free?
Yes, and it is confidential. You describe the situation, we tell you whether an investigation is likely to help, roughly what it would involve and what it would cost. There is no charge for that call and no obligation at the end of it.
More in this area
Other services in Investigations.
Where we work
Four metros, and the rest of Texas.
Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio are where most cases start. Coverage runs to the whole state, and records and asset work is run nationally.
Free consultation
Tell us what is going on. The first call is free.
Describe the situation and we will tell you honestly whether an investigation would help, what it would involve and what it would cost. Confidential, no obligation, and no charge for the conversation.