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The private
investigations industry has evolved in response to changing social issues.
Poor police work and high crime rates are among the factors that historically
led to the increased privatization of security provision and investigations.
However, today the private investigations industry has also expanded
into new areas because of greater public demand stemming from social
issues such as infidelity, the need for insurance and fraud prevention.
Increasingly, private investigation is viewed as a vocational trade
where specialist skills are provided including surveillance, interrogation,
interviewing and investigative report writing. In the U.S., there are
greater opportunities and institutions allowing individuals to train
to become a private investigator. Greater access to the profession has
resulted in the need for more regulation of the industry. This is important
to protect the right to privacy and to ensure the professionalism and
integrity of those who enter. Within the U.S., state jurisdictions vary
as to what information is in the public domain and it is crucial that
any information obtained by private investigators does not breach federal
or state privacy laws. In this connection, a key service provided by
the private investigation industry and based largely on public information
is the background check.
Background
checks are commonly requested by employers who wish to verify, among
other things, a prospective employee’s educational background, criminal
record and employment history. A private investigator may be contracted
to verify such information by accessing public records or for example,
conducting interviews of referees of the prospective employee. In the
context of employment relationships, such background checks are important
to an employer to provide security in the workplace; reduce turnover;
minimize the occurrence of theft and also to ensure that the right decision
is made in the employment process. (Falcone 2001) In the context of
personal relationships, a background check may prevent the vulnerable
from personal tragedies or discover infidelity.
I have never
carried out a background check on someone however I have been the subject
of several when applying for internships and jobs and am familiar with
the type of information requested. In my view, such checks are important
to ensure public confidence in business and certain professions because
in a society based on meritocracy, qualified candidates should be given
a job.
In addition,
to the importance of background checks, it is important to highlight
the function of private investigators in assisting attorneys and the
court with settling legal disputes. The fruits of an investigation may
corroborate evidence and support a case theory. It may also test the
veracity of evidence put forward by a party in legal proceedings. Further,
a well written investigative report or authentic evidence discovered
can save the courts’ time and resources by helping the tribunal to
come to a decision quicker or causing the matter to be settled out of
court altogether. This has great social implications and is important
for example, in the case of insurance fraud because the more cases are
settled out of court, the less costs are incurred by insurance companies
and thus consumers who may otherwise be bear the costs in greater insurance
premiums. Also, for a criminal defendant hiring a private investigator
is crucial in ensuring equality of arms given the Prosecution’s greater
resources to investigate the case against the accused and the potential
unwillingness of the police to investigate evidence that ay exonerate
the accused.
It is because
of the positive social implications in terms of alleviating an overburdened
court system and in ensuring the right to a fair trial of the accused
in a criminal case that I value the work of private investigators. In
my opinion, working as a private investigator would enhance the skills
that I developed during my academic studies and legal work experience
namely my research, analytical, writing and communication skills. Over
the past year, working as a Law clerk and Legal Assistant in the Prosecution
Division of the International Criminal Court, I worked closely with
the Investigations Division particularly in drafting questions for interviews
with witnesses and potential suspects. I realized the importance of
their work in terms of ensuring that we had enough quality evidence
to build a legally arguable case against the accused. I also saw first
hand how poor investigations planning and poor evidence gathering caused
several charges to be dropped against suspects and the impact on the
credibility of the Prosecutor’s office as an institution mandated
to bring war criminals to justice.
I believe that
my legal background in criminal and corporate matters, highlighted in
my resume, would allow me to fit in well to the private investigations
industry particularly in assisting attorneys or companies in settling
legal disputes.
Thank you for
your time and consideration.
Artis Kakonge
November 7, 2007
References
Falcone, P.
(2001) The Hiring and Firing: Question and Answer Book, New York: AMACOM.
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