An Article Worth Repeating – Ethics vs. Law by Bruce Weinstein

Posted on September 1, 2010 by adminisguwp

Imagine that you are producing a reality TV series about alcoholism. You like the cinéma vérité approach (otherwise known as the “fly on the wall” school of filmmaking), so you have your crew follow the routine of a woman, Pam, who is struggling with this disease. At one point, Pam decides to go for a drive. Before leaving the house, Pam takes a swig of vodka. She is in no position to get behind the wheel, so you ask her if she would like for someone in the crew to assist her.

She mumbles, “No, I can drive,” and heads out to her Pontiac Sunbird. Fearing that the woman could be a danger to herself and others, you prevent her from getting into her car and turning it into a killing machine, right? Wrong. You let her drive off.

WHAT?

Well, according to an article in the Oct. 8 issue of The New York Times (NYT), this is actually how a member of the team responsible for the A&E program, Intervention, responded to the situation. As disturbing as the choice to do nothing is, The Times notes that “legally, producers are treated like witnesses: They bear no responsibility to intervene.” Consider the following statement from Michael J. O’Connor, an attorney who has represented reality shows such as Survivor and America’s Next Top Model, as quoted in The Times:

“Television producers are not policemen. On a moral level, you get to the point where stepping in seems like it would be something you’d want to do. But from a legal standpoint, third parties causing injuries to other third parties is not something a television program is really responsible for.”

O’Connor’ statement raises three meaningful questions that apply not just to the world of TV but to the world at large:

•Are our responsibilities limited to what the law requires of us?

•If we are legally allowed to do something, does that mean we ought to?

•If there is no relevant law to speak of with respect to a “What should I do?” problem we’re facing, does that mean that anything goes?

The answers to these questions are: No. No. No.

Ethics vs. the Law

Imagine that you are at the end of your life and you are looking back on all you did and didn’t do over the years. Imagine also that your life was dedicated primarily to satisfying your own needs and desires. When faced with the question, “What should I do?,” you inevitably chose the solution that benefited you in some way, no matter how this choice affected others. How would you evaluate a life lived in this fashion?

Even if it was the case that you never broke any laws, you cannot say that you lived your best life, because life should not be solely about “me, myself, and I.” To be fully human and be a part of civilized society means to go beyond what the law demands of us. It means to live according to ethical rules and principles, many of which ask more of us than the law does. The answer to “What should I do?” should therefore not be, “What can I get away with legally?” but “What does ethics ask or even require of me?”

There are other differences between ethics and the law. Laws change over time. Laws vary from state to state. Most significantly, political and economic interests, and not the interests of the people, often determine which laws get passed and what is in those laws. Ethical standards, however, transcend time, place, and the whims of politics.

Forms of Punishment

For example, when you encounter an inebriated person who is about to go for a drive, you may not legally be required to get involved, but ethically you are, even if you are a producer of reality TV shows. It is no defense to say, as Intervention Executive Producer Sam Mettler does in The Times article, that “this is their life with me or without me.” As soon as you show up with a camera, you are ethically implicated in the choices your subject makes.

In fact, simply by being an observer, you are ethically accountable for what happens on your watch. To be a member of the human race is to care for what transpires in the world around us. It is hard to imagine how any law could demand that we care for strangers or require punishment if we don’t. This is the proper role, however, of ethics. The penalty for violating an ethical requirement may not involve a prison term, but it can involve scorn or ridicule from others, or feelings of guilt or shame for having let ourselves down or disappointed our family and friends. All of these are forms of punishment just the same.

In 1965, Hebrew National playfully seized upon the split between our legal and ethical responsibilities when it coined the slogan, “We answer to a higher authority.” They were on to something. Whether it’s cold cuts for lunch, a reliable computer for work, or a safe toy for your child, don’t you want the companies with which you do business to go beyond merely what the law requires of them and be the very best they can be?

From the Pages of History

Let’s delve more deeply into the schism between ethics and the law. Consider the following facts from U.S. history:

•Slavery was perfectly legal until the 13th Amendment to the Constitution abolished it in 1865.

•Children were allowed to work in mines, glass factories, and textile and other industries instead of going to school until the Fair Labor Standards Act was passed in 1938.

•Women didn’t have the right to vote until 1920.

•On Dec. 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Ala., Rosa Parks broke the law when she refused to give up her bus seat to a white passenger.

How is it possible that a practice that was legal in the past is now against the law? Is it the case that slavery, for example, used to be ethical, but now it isn’t? Of course not. Ethics hasn’t changed. The law just took awhile to become aligned with what is right.

Although business as an institution has been getting a bad rap in the mainstream media for the wrongful conduct committed at Enron, Adelphia, WorldCom, Tyco (TYC), and other companies, let’s not forget those organizations that took the high road, went beyond what the law required of them, and ultimately reaped many rewards. For example, in 1982, seven people in the Chicago area died of cyanide poisoning after unwittingly consuming tainted Tylenol capsules. Within a matter of days, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) responded aggressively by withdrawing all 31 million bottles of the drug (with a retail value of over $100 million), creating a new, triple-sealed package, and offering consumers deep discounts.

Effectively and Ethically Managing Crisis

The law did not require Johnson & Johnson to take such measures, but by doing so, the company earned the respect of consumers and the media alike, and this case is now widely taught in business schools as an example of how to manage a crisis effectively—and continue to prosper. Those seven who died can never be brought back, but J&J took extraordinary steps to ensure that no one else would be in jeopardy. Here we are, 25 years after the fact, still talking about how the company conducted itself admirably. (Disclosure: Several years ago, I gave a few speeches that were sponsored by Vistakon, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.)

For many more examples of companies that took the high road, even when they had no legal obligation to do so, see the latest issue of Ethisphere magazine.

For any law, we can and should ask: Is it right? Is it fair? Is it just?

The ultimate standards for deciding what we ought to do are ethical, not legal, ones. As the Intervention example shows, sometimes we are not legally obligated to do what we ought to do. Our history of failing to recognize the inherent dignity of women, children, and African-Americans shows that the law sometimes gets it all wrong. And the Tylenol case suggests that companies that value doing the right thing rather than what is merely legally required of them may not only endure, but prevail. As this column has endeavored to show over and over, the reason to do the right thing is simply because it is the right thing to do. Businesses that take ethics seriously, however, often find themselves winning over consumers and a skeptical media alike.

We are a nation of laws, and our society would quickly devolve into anarchy without the rule of law as a binding, motivating force for all of us. Nevertheless, the ethical principles of Do No Harm (BusinessWeek, 1/10/07), Make Things Better (BusinessWeek, 1/18/07), Respect Others (BusinessWeek, 1/25/07), Be Fair (BusinessWeek, 2/8/07), and Be Loving (BusinessWeek, 2/22/07) are the true basis of our society, and it is to those principles we ought to return every day when we ask ourselves: “What should I do? What kind of person should I be? How can I bring out the best in myself and others?”

Yes, laws are important. But all of us, and not just the employees of a certain manufacturer of hot dogs and salami, should answer to a higher authority.

Weinstein is the corporate consultant, author, and public speaker known as The Ethics Guy. He has appeared on numerous national TV shows and is the author of several books on ethics. His Ask the Ethics Guy! column appears every other week on BusinessWeek.com’s Managing channel.

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Court allows agents to secretly put GPS trackers on cars

Posted on August 27, 2010 by adminisguwp

Law enforcement officers may secretly place a GPS device on a person’s car without seeking a warrant from a judge, according to a recent federal appeals court ruling in California.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents in Oregon in 2007 surreptitiously attached a GPS to the silver Jeep owned by Juan Pineda-Moreno, whom they suspected of growing marijuana, according to court papers.

When Pineda-Moreno was arrested and charged, one piece of evidence was the GPS data, including the longitude and latitude of where the Jeep was driven, and how long it stayed. Prosecutors asserted the Jeep had been driven several times to remote rural locations where agents discovered marijuana being grown, court documents show.

Pineda-Moreno eventually pleaded guilty to conspiracy to grow marijuana, and is serving a 51-month sentence, according to his lawyer.

But he appealed on the grounds that sneaking onto a person’s driveway and secretly tracking their car violates a person’s reasonable expectation of privacy.

“They went onto the property several times in the middle of the night without his knowledge and without his permission,” said his lawyer, Harrison Latto.

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the appeal twice — in January of this year by a three-judge panel, and then again by the full court earlier this month. The judges who affirmed Pineda-Moreno’s conviction did so without comment.

Latto says the Ninth Circuit decision means law enforcement can place trackers on cars, without seeking a court’s permission, in the nine western states the California-based circuit covers.

The ruling likely won’t be the end of the matter. A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., arrived at a different conclusion in similar case, saying officers who attached a GPS to the car of a suspected drug dealer should have sought a warrant.

Experts say the issue could eventually reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

One of the dissenting judges in Pineda-Moreno’s case, Chief Judge Alex Kozinski, said the defendant’s driveway was private and that the decision would allow police to use tactics he called “creepy” and “underhanded.”

“The vast majority of the 60 million people living in the Ninth Circuit will see their privacy materially diminished by the panel’s ruling,” Kozinksi wrote in his dissent.

“I think it is Orwellian,” said Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, which advocates for privacy rights.

“If the courts allow the police to gather up this information without a warrant,” he said, “the police could place a tracking device on any individual’s car — without having to ever justify the reason they did that.”

But supporters of the decision see the GPS trackers as a law enforcement tool that is no more intrusive than other means of surveillance, such as visually following a person, that do not require a court’s approval.

“You left place A, at this time, you went to place B, you took this street — that information can be gleaned in a variety of ways,” said David Rivkin, a former Justice Department attorney. “It can be old surveillance, by tailing you unbeknownst to you; it could be a GPS.”

He says that a person cannot automatically expect privacy just because something is on private property.

“You have to take measures — to build a fence, to put the car in the garage” or post a no-trespassing sign, he said. “If you don’t do that, you’re not going to get the privacy.”

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Lead investigator in Mexico massacre is missing

Posted on August 27, 2010 by adminisguwp

Mexico City, Mexico (CNN) — A lead investigator and another official looking into the massacre of 72 migrants whose bodies were found this week in northern Mexico are missing, President Felipe Calderon said Friday.

Calderon, who was giving a speech on drug violence, initially said the body of one of the men had been found. But he was handed a note few minutes later and corrected himself, saying the investigator was missing but there was no information about his death.

Mexican media reported Friday morning that two bodies had been found and that one of them belonged to the investigator.

The attorney general’s office in Tamaulipas state, where the bodies of the 72 migrants were found Tuesday, identified the investigator as Roberto Jaime Suarez Vazquez. The news release did not name the other man other than to say he is a municipal police officer in San Fernando.

Both men disappeared Wednesday afternoon, the attorney general’s office said.

Bodies found in Mexico

Video: 72 bodies found in Mexican ranch RELATED TOPICS
Mexico
Felipe Calderon
Authorities have identified 31 of the 72 migrants whose bodies were found on a ranch near San Fernando, the attorney general’s statement said. Of those identified, 14 came from Honduras, 12 were from El Salvador, four were from Guatemala and one from Brazil, the official said.

A young man from Ecuador who led navy personnel to the scene of the massacre said he escaped after pretending he was dead. He suffered a neck wound and remained hospitalized Friday.

Officials are investigating whether the Zetas drug cartel carried out the killings, as the young man reportedly told police.

Images of the scene show the bodies lying along the inside walls of a grain barn. The migrants are blindfolded and their hands are bound. All are fully clothed.

Central American migrants traveling through Mexico on their way to the United States are often the victims of violence and other crimes.

“Every year, thousands of migrants are kidnapped, threatened or assaulted by members of criminal gangs,” Amnesty International said in a report this year. “Extortion and sexual violence are widespread and many migrants go missing or are killed. Few of these abuses are reported and in most cases those responsible are never held to account.”

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Sudan sentences 19 men for wearing women’s clothes

Posted on August 4, 2010 by adminisguwp

KHARTOUM — A Sudanese court on Wednesday sentenced 19 young Muslim men to 30 lashes and a fine for breaking moral codes by wearing women’s clothes and makeup, a case exposing Sudanese sensitivity toward homosexuality.

Many of the defendants tried to hide their faces from the around 200 people who watched as they were lashed straight after their sentencing. The men had no lawyers present and said nothing in their own defense.

The trial judge said police had raided a party thrown by the 19 men and found them dancing “in a womanly fashion,” wearing women’s clothes and makeup. He said there was a video of the party and that one woman who was present had fled the scene.

The defendants were charged with violating Sudan’s public morality codes.

Local newspapers reported that the party was held to celebrate a same-sex wedding, propelling it into a talking point all over Khartoum’s conservative Muslim society. The court on Wednesday made no mention of a marriage ceremony.

One lawyer present, who declined to be named, said legal advocates would have been afraid to take on such a defense.

“These people did not get a chance for justice,” he said. “Public opinion and the media prejudged them and lawyers were too scared to come and defend them.”

Islamic sharia law has been weaved into Sudan’s legal code and was a sticking point in a 2005 peace deal which ended more than two decades of civil war between Khartoum’s Islamists and the mostly Christian and animist southern rebels.

The south was exempted from sharia but it still applies in Khartoum, where many non-Muslims live. Khartoum’s women’s jail is filled with southern non-Muslims convicted of manufacturing or selling alcohol.

Copyright 2010 Reuters. Click for restrictions.

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Reviews on Two of my New Books

Posted on July 31, 2010 by adminisguwp

“You + Me = We; How to Communicate with a teen diagnosed with a mental illness or anyone else, for that matter”
By Deborah Colleen Rose
The introduction is very helpful in setting a boundary for communication, i.e.. you cannot communicate with a person who is “raging”, in this case, safety for everyone is the primary goal.
The way this workbook starts is very engaging, it takes you right into the mind of your child (or attempts to) it is very helpful in setting a paradigm for which to continue through the other assignments. The thought provoking questions disarm a parent who is truly seeking to understand their child. Then shifts to have parents take a look at themselves in a non-threatening way. Ending with the goals the workbook has in mind with the first one being that parents must take care of themselves before they can take care of their kids.

Through out the book it is straight forward, easy to understand language with avenues of explanation for more difficult words or concepts. The practical applications can be implemented in a family right away. Teaching families to build on the strength they have already, love, and “tweaking” that powerful connection to work for a family not against them in negative expressions such as fear, anger, etc; that are fueled by disappointment, dreams lost, conflict, stress, anxiety, poor communication and bad choices. This is an excellent thought through and organized workbook that could reap great benefits for families who choose to implement these skills.

They way it is written communicates true understanding of these issues with MI teens from an experiential point of view. It also exudes the love, empathy, humility, and compassion, the writer has for her children and other teens that suffer from mental illness. I recommend this workbook for laypersons and professionals alike.

The only concern I would express about this workbook is the level of “understanding” a parent has. This is somewhat tied to education, but also motivation and desire to be a better parent. Some of the parents we work with at Metrocare are attending services to “fix” the child, without considering that they too may need the help. These parents are generally at the prompting of the school or legal system with little or no motivation to engage in a process of change.

“Sick Can Be Fixed” by Deborah Colleen Rose
This is a peer to peer publication written by a parent for parents. The stories throughout the book offer great vignettes for expounding what is being taught, in particular the story of Josh and his “not being evil …. sick can be fixed (hence the title).” (funny, I use the, MI does not mean you are evil, unintelligent, etc with my clients all the time:)
However, this is a very technical book as well, teaching many new words and concepts through out the book.This is a book for those who not only want to know the symptoms of the MI, but the etiology and history. I think it would benefit a person who has at least some high school education and higher. Many, many parents would benefit with this approach and it would give a greater understanding and empathy for the biological functions of the brain. Some parents would get lost and either skip ahead or stop reading altogether, these are generally lower functioning adults themselves, lower education, or parents who do not desire or seek to understand their child.

This would be best if done in group with a facilitator to guide, answer questions, at least the first time through the book.
This is a great resource for parents to gain a plethora of knowledge about several diagnoses. It answers questions and gives sound guidance. One concern, if the parent attempts to “self diagnose” the child and attempts to be fixated on one element or diagnosis or medication and is resistant to the professional’s impute in treatment or prescribing medications
I really liked the C.H.U.N.K. approach to attaining ones core emotion. It is easy to understand and implement right away. The direction given to establish a treatment, plan, goals and interaction with the school system in particular will be exceptionally helpful to parents.The crisis plan is a crucial step in being proactive. I can see these implemented in most of our families immediately.

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Military Stress: Army Releases Report on Suicide Prevention

Posted on July 31, 2010 by adminisguwp

With suicides at an all-time high, the U.S. Army released a report today blaming “a permissive unit environment” for high risk behavior.

“For some, the rigors of service, repeated deployment, injuries and separations from family resulted in a sense of isolation, hopelessness and life fatigue,” Army Vice Chief of Staff Peter Chiarelli says in a letter accompanying the report.

In fiscal year 2009, 160 soldiers took their own lives. In addition, there were 1,713 suicide attempts and nearly 17,000 drug and alcohol offenses.

The report cites an increase in waivers granted to new recruits coming into the Army. Since 2004 more 20 percent of new recruits were granted waivers for behavior that otherwise would have kept them out of the service. “Of the 80,403 waivers granted,” the report states, “47,478 were granted to individuals with a history of drug, alcohol, misdemeanor crimes, or serious misconduct (defined as a felony.)”

While waivers have been on the rise, the report says, there has been a decrease in soldiers being forced to leave the Army for misconduct. “This has resulted in the retention of over 25,283 soldiers who would have otherwise been separated in previous years,” the report states, citing “an increase in tolerance, if not acceptance of high risk behavior.”

Commanders may overlook misconduct when they are preparing their units for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan, an Army official told reporters in a background briefing this morning. “When you go to deploy you want every soldier you can get,” he said.

“We know that we are strained and stressed, but it’s a highly capable force,” the official said. The Army report contains 240 recommendations to get more counseling and mental health services to soldiers. “Just like (physical) fitness we’re going to go after mental fitness,” an Army official said.

Marijuana use is on the rise among soldiers, the report states, even as retention of multiple drug offenders continues. “3,000 soldiers are expected to test positive for the second or third time next year.”

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Former State Department official sentenced to life for spying for Cuba

Posted on July 17, 2010 by adminisguwp

Washington (CNN) – A former State Department analyst was sentenced to life in prison Friday for spying for Cuba for almost 30 years.

His wife and partner in spying received a sentence of six years and nine months, but will get credit for more than a year already served.

Kendall Myers, 73, pleaded guilty last November to conspiracy to commit espionage and wire fraud. His wife, Gwendolyn Steingraber Myers, 72, admitted to one count of conspiracy to gather and transmit national defense information.

Kendall Myers’ life sentence does not include the possibility of parole.

In a prepared statement, Myers said he and his wife never wanted to harm Americans.

“We wish to add at this time that we acted as we did for 30 years because of our ideals and beliefs,” he said. “We did not seek nor receive payment for our work. We did not act out of anger at the United States or from a feeling of anti-Americanism. Nor did we ever intend to hurt any individual Americans. Our overriding objective was to help the Cuban people defend their revolution. We also hoped to forestall conflict between the two countries.”

“We share the dreams and ideals of the Cuban revolution,” he added. “We are equally committed to helping the struggling people of the world, whether they are here at home or abroad.”

As part of their sentences, the couple also agreed to pay the government more than $1.7 million, a figure matching Kendall Myers’ estimated salary over the years while working for the U.S. government and secretly spying for Cuba.

The two were arrested in June 2009 after meeting several times with an undercover FBI agent to whom they admitted their activities on behalf of Cuba. Those meetings were captured on video and audio tape.

Court documents painted an intriguing picture of a couple motivated by admiration for Fidel Castro and the Cuban revolution. They used code names. Kendall Myers was known as Agent 202. Gwendolyn Myers used the names Agent 123 and Agent E-634.

They used a shortwave radio to communicate from their District of Columbia home with their Cuban handlers. The couple also admitted they met Cuban agents on overseas trips to various places, including Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Mexico, Brazil, Ecuador and Argentina.

Kendall Myers worked at the State Department’s Foreign Service Institute and later at the department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research. He received a “top secret” security clearance in 1985.

According to court documents, Myers told the undercover FBI agent he usually took information from the State Department by memorizing it or taking notes, and upon occasion he actually took classified documents home. Gwendolyn Myers said she would process the information to be delivered to their Cuban intelligence handlers.

At the request of the defense, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton agreed to recommend the Myerses serve their time in facilities near one another to make it easier for family members to visit them. The Bureau of Prisons will make the ultimate decision on that.

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Godo News for One Family! Missing 4-year-old girl found alive!

Posted on July 8, 2010 by adminisguwp

(CNN) — Police in Missouri are working with other law enforcement agents in their search for a man suspected of abducting a 4-year-old girl who was later found at a gas station, St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch said Wednesday.

Fitch said Alisa Maier has since been reunited with her family, after she was kidnapped from her home in Louisiana, Missouri, while playing outside with her 6-year old brother on Monday.

“She’s been released from the hospital and she’s with her family. …As best I can tell, she’s in good shape,” Fitch said during a news conference Wednesday.

Authorities issued an Amber Alert Monday after the young girl was abducted. She was found alive Tuesday at about 9:45 p.m. in Fenton, Missouri, about 70 miles from her home in Louisiana, Missouri, police said.

Video: Missing 4-year-old girl found alive

Video: 4-year-old snatched from front yard

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She was discovered near a gas station car wash after witnesses saw her walking away from a car described as having “a very loud muffler,”

Alisa — who witnesses first thought was a boy — was taken to a hospital after police interviewed her and identified her as the missing 4-year-old, Fitch explained. He would not comment on whether the child’s appearance was altered to make her appear to be a boy, and authorities said doctors would determine whether she had been injured or abused.

The chief told reporters that witnesses described the man driving the car as “a white male, possibly a dark-skinned white male, (with) short dark hair, (in his) early 30′s.”

“He was in a black or dark-brown, mid-size four-door vehicle, possibly a Ford Escort,” he added.

Fitch said witnesses saw Alisa walking around the car wash after hearing the loud muffler on the suspect’s vehicle, which was also missing wheel covers on the driver’s side.

Alisa’s grandfather, Roy Harrison, told CNN affiliate KSDK that Alisa was smiling Wednesday morning. The family is asking t he suspected kidnapper to turn himself in.

“We tell him that he did the first step. That’s what I tell everybody, he’s done the first step,” said Harrison. “He needs to step up and admit he has a problem and turn himself in and be accountable for what he has done.”

Alisa was snatched from the front yard of her home in Louisiana, Missouri, on Monday evening while she was playing with her brother, police there said.

Anita McKlevis, who lives across the street from the family, said Alisa’s mother was “just beside herself” and tried to pursue the man who abducted the girl.

“She jumped up and went across the street, got into her van and took off,” McKlevis told HLN’s “Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell.”

She said the children were regularly supervised by parents or grandparents while playing outside: “I never seen this little girl without her parents,” McKlevis added.

Louisiana is about 80 miles north of St. Louis.

CNN’s Scott Thompson contributed to this report.

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Aske iSleuth a Question

Posted on June 29, 2010 by adminisguwp

Dear Isleuth:

I am a small business owner and recently felt that my employees were extended family. However, I have a situation that has arisen and am not sure what to do. The person in questioned has a questionable record and I hired them knowing they had a “past” but not sure exactly what it entailed. Now my other employees are threatening to quit because they are uncomfortable with his behavior. He may have a mental disorder but I am not sure. I was informed yesterday that criminal charges had been filed against him for telephone harassment. Can you help? You have a lot of options that we will address and also some things to do to keep you from being in this boat again.

Dear Family Type:

First of all, since I am not an attorney,  I do not offer legal advice, only my opinion.  If you have an attorney, you should call yours. Ask them for advice. This is why you keep them on retainer. Many people try to not involve their attorneys until they are being sued. A good attorney is to help you so you DON’T GET SUED. I do however suggest you confirm that criminal charges are actually filed. IF they are, you may have grounds to put him on administrative leave until the charges are resolved. Depending on what state you are in, you may have the right just to fire him now, outright. Once again, your attorney will guide you on these issues. What I really want to stress to you is that most people like to hire people they are comfortable with. What most folks don’t’ think about is that the average criminal is charming, personable and able to manipulate. This is what makes them so good at being a criminal. It is the unsociable, slightly boring, non-conversational person that sometimes makes the best employees. Why? Because they don’t have criminal records. So before you hire anyone else, making sure your documents are all FCRA compliant, please hire a licensed investigator to verify that this person has no past criminal histories and is not a professional litigator – meaning he’s not in the habit of suing everyone he comes in contact with. This is a very good start for keeping you, your assets and your present employees safe and sound. And don’t be fooled by companies and web site that sell “complete criminal background for $25.00″. There is not such animal. Each state keeps it’s records in a different manner and there is no national criminal database that is accessible to the public or any one who is not law enforcement. Private investigators assist in the legal process, but we are not law enforcement. Accessing and selling this information is ILLEGAL and if used in an employment situation is not only a violation of the FCRA but a criminal act in itself. It could be a strain running your business from the local jail house, even for one day. Part of running a business is knowing the laws that govern it.

In regards to the possibility of your employee having a mental disorder – let em ask you this – would you fire an employee who was sick with a disease such a cancer?  If you employee is ill, there are federal laws and state laws that regulate who you can fire, and why and also some items such as this are controlled by the American Disabilties Act.  You just don’t have enough facts here to make a solid decision.  Consult an attorney and get a game plan in place.

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Ask iSleuth a Question

Posted on June 25, 2010 by adminisguwp

Dear Isleuth:

I thought my husband was cheating and hired an investigator to confirm his activities. They found him doing nothing but staying at the office late. However, I can’t shake this feeling I have that something is going on. What do you say?

Dear Working Late:

First of all, I would ask just what did the investigator confirm? You know your husband is not leaving his office until him leaves for home. However, who else is in the office when he is there? What is he doing while he is “working” late? With the ability to access the internet from any location including your local coffee house, it is possible to sustain an affair any time, anywhere, even for 24 hours continuously if you’re so inclined to loose that much sleep. I’d also ask for videotape of all vehicles and people coming and going form the premises. Verification of the vehicles ownership and identifying of the people are very important to confirming that your husband is only “working” while at the office. Lastly, I would ask the investigator if they visually confirmed your husband was in the office and what other people they might have seen in the office? If they placed your husband in his office, found no other people there and were able to determine that he and no one else left or entered the facility by any of the exits, and this pattern was determined over a period of time, then I would say you have a strong foundation of an investigation. If your investigator did not suggest this, I would recommend that you check bank receipts and credit card bills for any unknown charges. This will help you to determine if your husbands is involved in any sexual activity over the internet – web sites with live cams, chat rooms, porn sites are just a few things now available. If you do all this and still feel uneasy, my personal suggestion would be that you speak with a counselor and ask your husband to join you. There are issues that you need to address and it could prove helpful to have your husband at your side to assist you.

Posted in Advocacy, Background Checks, Due Diligience, Investigations, Surveillance | Leave a comment