TRAFFIC TICKETS
Traffic tickets are found at the local county courthouse. Almost everyone gets them. When you find one, pull the ticket. You'll find the following information on it:

Name
Address
DOB
Driver License Number
Date Of Violation
Car, Year, Make, Model,
Tag Number
Location Of The Violation

Not only have you obtained some vitial information you liekly didn't have, it's important to note that most people get tickets within a 50 mile radious of where they live--you might be close!

TV SURVEY PRETEXT
The best pretext I use is the " TV Commercial Survey" I call the individual in question, ask them if they would like to earn $75-100 for just viewing a commercial and completeing a short evaluation on the message that the commercial sends to the viewer. Rarely do I find someone who does not want to earn some money just for watching a 90 second commercial. Once I have their interest I ask them for their address, thank them , then use the Columbo approach, saying Oh I forgot, I need to make sure threre is no conflicts with our customer, could you answer a few questions, like where do you work, how many in the family etc. you would be surprised how much information you will get. Of course the commercial survey is never sent to anyone, they just were not accepted in this program.

SMALL CLAIMS RECORDS
While you are at the traffic court, it is likely that small claims is nearby. If your subject has filed a claim, the details of the claim will probably give you all sorts of leads. Same -- but even better -- if the the subject is the defendant of a claim. In that case, chances are the person filing the claim will have a pretty good idea where the subject is and will be happy to tell you (especially if the defendant owes money.)

Another hint: While you are at small claims, step over to the regular municourt clerk to check files for any other civil actions, especially unlawful detainers which -- if you find one -- will tell you where a subject lived and during what time period. Chances are neighbors at that address or the apartment manager or the clerk at the closest liquor store may have information about the subject.

AT THE DOOR
Im new at this so this idea may be old hat to most of you but i thought it was clever. I heard about it 3rd hand. Apparently a p.i. working this area used to get tired of surveillance to see if a particular person lived in a residence. So now she parks her car within photographing range and sends a couple little kids to the door with a picture of a dog. The kids say they lost their dog and has anyone seen it. "Is there anyone else who might have seen it??" their goal is to get everyone in the house to the door or on the porch to look at the picture. They are also alert to overhearing something like "Chuck might have seen it but he's not here right now""...:Pretty clever I thot! I love clever ideas like that. by the way...im brand new at this so im open to any and all advice or suggestions from anyone. Thanks.

SSN/MARRIAGE RECORDS
One of the most important is the Social Security Number trace which pulls "header" information from all credit bureau files. But sometimes you don't have a social security number. In Texas, I find they can always be found in marriage records. So there you have it! Check local county court records (marriage) to pull the SSN number and then run SSN tracing.

AT THE DOOR AGAIN
I used my son once to talk to some kids his own age, @ 10 to find out where a family was moving to but who would admit it!

LETTERS
Address a letter to the person you are looking for. Put on the envelope Do Not Forward, Address Correction Requested, Return to Sender. Most of the times post office will give a new address. Found some vehicles we were looking for with this. One problem with this. It takes some time. :)

ADOPTION CASE TRICK
Hi all, I don't know if this qualifies as a "trick". I specialize in adoption search and reunion. Mainly, I have to find birth parents without having the name to start with.. One thing to remember in this type of search is that the adoptee ALWAYS will look like the birth parent. If you have a general idea of where the parents went to school either high school or college you can look in the yearbooks. I alway get a picture of the adoptee as 17-18 year-old or the age the birth was when she gave birth. Then go to the school or write for pictures from the yearbook in that area. I have found many people that way. Once you know a name you can call the school for a "reunion" comminttee chairman and find out if anyone knows where this person is currently.

DATES
The other thing I do is when calling a suspected birth parent I use the does this date have any special meaning for you. That way you nail them from the beginning if it is the birth mother or for birth fathers that will tell you if they knew about the child or not. Even if they deny it you can sense the catch in their voice. Pretty direct, but it works. Nancy

DELIVERY
I would send some flowers or pizza or send a fed x , meet the driver and ride with him up to the residence.

MISSING PERSONS AND SKIP TRACING FORUM
A list for those interested in skip tracing and locate missing persons.

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