Private detectives are notoriously good at finding things. Whether it be evidence or assets, a PI works with you to find what you are looking for. One such job that PIs often take on is to help parents retain or gain custody of their minor children.
Alcoholism and addiction can rip a family apart. It can make a fit parent unfit. It can also help you, as a sober parent, win full custody.
A few years ago I was working a case where a concerned mother wanted her soon-to-be ex-husband watched while he had their children for the weekend. The mother had heard some interesting stories about the father – namely that he took their young children to inappropriate places such as adult parties. This wise mother knew that the word of her children was probably not enough to show to a court that she deserved full custody. She wanted evidence.
We followed the husband for the entire weekend. We watched him pick up the kids and drop them off at his mother’s house (the kids’ grandmother). He didn’t return to pick them up until a couple of hours before he was due to return them to their mother. He didn’t leave his apartment very much but he did have some interesting visitors. Right before he took his children home, he had a stop to make. He pulled up into an alley behind an abandoned building. A greasy-haired, tattooed fellow jumped in the front seat. The children were in the back. The husband proceeded to buy a sizable package of what appeared to be a white powder. My expert eye told me that it was not baking powder.
While this might have been enough for some parents to win custody, this mother wanted more evidence. We continued our surveillance the following weekend. On this particular weekend we watched the husband take his kids to the park while he snuck off and snorted a white substance behind a tree, a few yards away from where his children played. When his daughter fell off of a piece of playground equipment and ran to her dad for comfort, he shooed her away and told her to “toughen up”. What was both tragic and triumphant about this moment was that we caught the daughter’s look of fear and distrust as she ran away from her father with tears in her eyes. It was tragic because the little girl feared someone she once sought comfort in, and triumphant because we knew that this father wouldn’t have partial custody of his children for much longer.
The mother was disturbed by what she saw in the video evidence. She knew that her estranged spouse had once had a drug problem, but was under the impression that he had conquered it. Armed with the evidence obtained by the PI, she went to court and fought for full custody of her children. She won. Her former spouse now has only supervised visits with their children.
If you are even a tiny bit suspicious of your former spouse’s ability to care for your children, it’s a good idea to hire a private investigator. We can gather the evidence you need to win your custody battle and ensure that your children are raised in a safe, healthy and loving environment – with you.
