The thing to do in such cases is to take a recorded witness statement and nail down all the details. In some cases a witness may be lying because they have some relationship with the opposing party. This can put the witness at ease and make them more likely to cooperate. Good investigators are able to act as disinterested parties just trying to uncover the facts. If you need to find out if a witness is lying start by hiring an experienced private investigator to interview the witness. If possible the investigator will take a statement from witness while in the field and if not practical they will get contact information and make arrangements for a statement in the future. A good investigator will present themselves as a disinterested party so as to not put people on the defensive if they are associated with the defendant in the case. ![]() This will help if they need to follow up and re-canvas. The investigator should keep a log of all the places and times that they canvassed for witnesses. The only caveat to this is that often people are away working during the day so early evening or weekends can also be an effective time to conduct the witness canvas. ![]() ![]() The best time to conduct a witness canvas is usually on the same day of the week and at the same time of day as when the accident occurred. It is important to conduct a witness investigation as soon as possible after the accident since memories fade and people often move. Experienced investigators are skilled at not being obtrusive and blending in with their surroundings. The most efficient person to conduct such an investigation would be a private investigator. If you need to find witnesses to an accident the best place to start is to go to the scene where it happened and canvas for witnesses. The experienced investigator will ask repeated questions about time, speed and distance to lock down the defendant’s testimony. In this case the job of the investigator is to nail down the facts as precisely as possible so that there is no room for the defendant to change their story in the future after they are possibly coached by the opposing parties. In most cases the defendant will present a set of facts in which they are claiming they are not at fault. The best technique for these statements is the recorded telephonic witness statement. So again time is of the essence to get the job done. So in most cases this needs to be accomplished in the first week or so after the accident before opposing legal counsel is retained.Īnother challenge to getting a defendant statement is that most of the time the defendant’s insurance company will advise them not to give any statements. This is because the investigator can’t speak to the defendant if they are represented by legal counsel. If you need a statement from a defendant in a personal injury case, hiring a private investigator as soon as possible is essential. In addition the unfavorable statement may prompt you to decide the case is not worth pursuing. ![]() For smaller cases this may not matter since they rarely go to court. The caveat to recorded statements is that “what you hear is what you get.” This means if the witness is unfavorable to your theory of liability you will have an unhelpful witness statement that can be discoverable in the future. Afterwards the statement is transcribed and forwarded to the attorney. It is essential to confirm on tape that they are giving their permission to be recorded. In this case the investigator calls the witness and confirms they saw the accident and gets their permission to record an interview. There are few options when it comes to witness statements.įor the average auto accident case a recorded telephonic witness statement will suffice. Legal investigators have the experience necessary to obtain quality statements that will hold up in court should the need arise. If you need to get a witness statement in an auto accident or other personal injury case using a private investigator is your best source.
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