INTERNET
RESOURCES FOR INVESTIGATION
Jim Strupp
Investigator
Federal Public
Defender
District of
Oregon
SEARCH ENGINES
Google
Take the time to
learn about all the developing Google services. See:
www.google.com/options/index.html. , and
http://www.google.com/help/index.html
Google
everything. Period.
Vivisimo
Upcoming search
result methodology. Creates "on-the-fly" table of contents for search
results. Beware, includes some paid search placement.
PAID SERVICES
- PUBLIC RECORD / COURT DATABASES
Accurint
Comprehensive
cross-referenced national public records database. Most cost-effective records
reseller search tool. Most searches 25 cents, special searches $1.00. Some
no-hit, no-fee searches. Comprehensive reports $4.50. Run by the original
founders of Accurint. Aggressively adding new sources. Includes phones, assets,
and property records. Oregon records include driver records, corrections and
courts. Frequent updating.
Autotrack
The former gold
standard of public records databases. Now owned by Choicepoint. Somewhat
stagnant in their recent development and interface improvement. Sluggish record
updating. Relatively expensive compared to Accurint. Most searches $1.00-$2.00.
Comprehensive reports $12.00 - $15.00. Still, has some sourcing that Accurint
does not have.
Choicepoint
Online
https://www.choicepointonline.com/default.asp
Choicepoint's
original public records product, still distinct from Accurint. Pricing varies
with category of user. Check with sales for additional pricing. Relatively
awkward to use, and slow. Clunky reports, and weak cross referencing. Still,
has some independent sourcing, not found in other databases.
Openonline
Oregon and Ohio
regional public records searching (as a result of a merger of two regional
companies). Finer graded records searches in some regional areas. Contains
robust Oregon and Washington searches, with extensions into Idaho and National
Gateways. Searches are fee. Viewing most hits costs $4.00, which is relatively
expensive. Oregon, Criminal, corrections, and courts reports are expensive
compared with other sources. $25.00 per minimum monthly fee. Some searches
"real time". Valuable search capabilities if hits are followed up
with primary agency, rather than viewed.
Oregon
Judicial Information Network. (OJIN)
http://www.ojd.state.or.us/ojin
Oregon state
courts docket and case management system. Real time docket access to state
district, circuit and appellate courts. A little awkward to learn at first, is
a "must have" "must know" resource for any Oregon
investigator. OJIN everyone.
Federal
Courts: PACER / ECF
Pacer
Registration Information:
National Index:
http://pacer.uspci.uscourts.gov
Federal courts
electronic docketing access system. Includes District, Bankruptcy, and Circuit
Courts of Appeals. Oregon is now split into two separate sources, the original
PACER, and the newer ECF (Electronic Case Filing). All cases are migrating to
ECF for future use. Account required, and fees are relatively cheap at 7 cents
per page of docket retrieved. Almost all District courts, and Circuit Courts of
appeals, are internet accessible. National searching is robust and simple. A
must for federal practitioners.
Washington
Courts- JIS Link
http://www.courts.wa.gov/jislink
Washington State
Courts public electronic records access. The best and most thorough access to
Washington court records. Includes statewide search capability for criminal
cases. A very complicated and user unfriendly system to use. Unwieldy to learn:
a maze of commands and abbreviations. Print capabilities are primitive. Yet, very
inexpensive. Be the
coolest investigator on the block teasing information out of this one.
Washington
Courts - Reseller
Paid search
service for Washington State electronic court records. $8.95 per searched
entity for Superior Court searches, $24.95 per entity for district court
searches. Payable by credit card. Basically, they search JIS Link for you,
through an on-line order. Perhaps useful in a pinch or on a limited-need basis.
Washington
State Vehicle Vessel Inquiry. IVIPS
Lookups for State
of Washington vehicles only. No drivers license information. Account with
permissible purpose needed. For registration information, contact Eileen Boman;
Washington State Dept. Licensing, PO Box 2957, Olympia, WA 98507, (360)
902-3760
Oregon State
Police Open Records Unit.
Public Criminal
Records Inquiry
http://www.osp.state.or.us/html/public_records_unit.html
Account needs to
be established with OSP. Subject of search notified of inquiry at last known address.
Includes all convictions, and arrests within one calendar year. Request form
online, results mailed to requestor.
OTHER COURTS
Oregon
Judicial Department
Homepage contains
links to every available Oregon Court website, and provides contact/address
information.
Courts.Net
Somewhat
outdated, but a very broad and useful list of local courts nationwide. A good
starting point.
National
Center for State Courts
http://www.ncsconline.org/D_KIS/info_court_web_sites.html#State
A
non-comprehensive set of links to other state court websites.
National
Association of Counties. County Lookup
Click "About
Counties" "Find a
County" or
http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=/cffiles/counties/usamap.cfm
County name
lookup by state, city, or town.
Search Tip:
Quickest way to find almost any state or county jurisdiction website or contact
information is to Google the Name of County and/or State and
"Courts".
Immigration
Courts
http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir/sibpages/ICadr.htm
An updated list
of every Immigration Court in the nation, with contact information. Deportation
and removal proceeding tapes and documents can be ordered through the Executive
Office of Immigration Review.
U.S. Supreme
Court
Supreme Court
Dockets, case information. Transcripts of oral arguments about one month after
argument.
Oyez
Everything
Supreme Court related. Audio recordings of most oral arguments.
JAILS /
CORRECTIONS / INMATE LOCATORS
VineLink -
Oregon Corrections & County Jails Inmate Searches.
Selected searches
other states also.
http://www.vinelink.com/index.jsp
Victim
Information Notification Everyday (VINE) service. Oregon's first comprehensive
inmate locator service covering county jails and Department of Corrections.
Important resource for inmate location and jail identification numbers.
Oregon
Department of Corrections Inmate
Information by Email
Mary.L.Solomon@doc.state.or.us
Oregon Offender
Information and Sentence Computation Branch. Provide an email with the inmate's
name SID number, and request the Public Record screens. Be sure to include your
identifying and contact information. Will provide detailed inmate charge and
sentence information history usually within 24 hours. Please do not over-tax
this resource. She is only one woman. Oregon DOC website: http://www.doc.state.or.us.
U.S. Bureau of
Prisons (BOP) Webpage & Inmate Locator
Locates federal
inmates both in custody and released, back to 1982.
Multnomah
County Sheriff's Matrixed Offenders.
http://www.inmatereleases.org/
Includes mugshot
and charging information for low level offenders released due to bed space
shortage.
Oregon County
Inmate Rosters
http://lto.locktrack.com/public/reports
Benton, Lincoln,
Marion, Tillamook Counties daily jail rosters on-line. Also see http://www.tillamooksheriff.org
Lane County
Jail Inmate lookup
http://e-airs.org/inmateinformation/InmateInformation.asp?lastname=@&firstname=@
Lane County
current inmates lookup and jail roster.
Other State
Inmate Lookups Links.
http://www.virtualgumshoe.com/gator40.htm
List of inmate
lookups on-line, nationwide.
Nationwide
State Departments of Corrections List.
http://www.corrections.com/links/viewlinks.asp?Cat=30
Search Tip:
Search County and State name, plus "inmate locator" or "Inmate
Roster" in Google to find additional out of state jail inmate sites.
Example: Los
Angeles County Jails: app1.lasd.org/iic/ajis_search.cfm
PHONE
RESOURCES
Qwest White
& Yellow Pages:
Yahoo Yellow
Pages
Yellow pages
information by location / zip code. Especially useful if traveling.
Fone Finder
Find out which
company controls a particular phone number.
AnyWho Reverse
Directory
FCC
Telecommunications Company Locator
http://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/cib/form499/499a.cfm
Find all
telecommunications carriers providing service within a particular state. Click
on the name of the state only, enter nothing else, and click search, for a
complete list within a state.
FREE SEARCH
SITES
NOTE: Generally
limited in scope and application, these lookups arelinked to for fee searches
that are overpriced, and not designed for the professional. Still these sites
are worth knowing, if only because they have resources that can sometimes
verify known or partial information. This is only a handful of the dozens of
these sites.
Find almost
anyone's birthday by name.
Melissa
http://www.melissadata.com/Lookups/index.htm
A marketing list
company offering some free searches about geographic areas and demographics.
Infospace
The original web
based information finder. Still going.
441.com
A subset of
Infospace.
EMERGENCY
COMMUNICATIONS / 911
Oregon
Emergency Communication / 911.
http://www.osp.state.or.us/oem/organization/Technology%20and%20Response/psap_list.htm
Complete list of
911, Emergency Communications entities in Oregon.
Washington
State 911 Dispatches:
http://emd.wa.gov/2-e911/911ctycoords.htm
Complete list of
Washington State 911, dispatch centers.
LAW
ENFORCEMENT
Portland
Police Bureau
http://www.portlandonline.com/police
PPB's webpage
contains police records ordering procedures, all police General Orders, Crime
Mapper geographic incident reporting system, and precinct/division information,
press releases, etc..
Search Tip:
Most local police agencies have a web presence of some sort. Google for city or
agency name plus "police".
Officer.com
Police Agency Search
http://search.officer.com/agencysearch
National police
agency website listings.
National
Public Safety Information Bureau
Publishers of the
National Directory of Law Enforcement Administrators. Online version available
for subscription for an annual fee. The most comprehensive single source of law
enforcement agencies. Hard copy of directory is very useful, but relatively
expensive.
PUBLIC RECORDS
/ FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
Tapping
Officials' Secrets
Public Records
Law Help Site
http://www.rcfp.org/tapping/index.cgi?function=browse
State by state
compendium of public records request rules, procedures, and issues. Very
comprehensive Oregon section. By the Reporters' Committee for Freedom of the
Press.
Federal
Agencies: Freedom of Information (FOIA) Pages
All U.S.
Government agencies are required by law to make their FOIA request information
available on-line. Almost all agencies' websites have a FOIA section. Additionally,
they must publish a list and descriptions of their "Major Information
Systems" to assist the requester. Most MIF's are listed online, some are
not.
Search Tip:
The best route is to Major Information Systems lists is to Google the federal
Agency Name plus "FOIA" plus "Major Information Systems".
Example: DEA
Major Information Systems returns: www.usdoj.gov/dea/foia/foiatoc.html
STATE OF
OREGON
State of
Oregon Webpage
Oregon State
Employee Search
http://www.state.or.us/cgi-bin/employee.html
State telephone
directory search by name or state agency. Useful if you know who you are
looking for. ** Or, buy the 2004 Oregon State Directory (hardcopy). Very cheap
and useful. Capitol Gift Shop: (503) 986-1391.
Oregon
Administrative Rules
http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/banners/rules.htm
Oregon State
Legislature / Oregon Regulations
Bills, Laws,
complete current Oregon Revised Statutes
Oregon State
Bar Member Directory
http://www.osbar.org/members/start.asp
Active members of
the Oregon State Bar. Contains opt-out provision for members' contact
information.
Oregon Board
of Medical Examiners - Physician License Search
http://www.bme.state.or.us/search.html
Find any licensed
doctor in orgon, and a record of whether any disciplinary action has been
sustained.
National
Physician's Search: American Medical Association
http://dbapps.ama-assn.org/aps/amahg.htm
National
physician lookup. AMA member physicians only.
Oregon
Secretary of State Business Names / Corporations Search
http://sos-venus.sos.state.or.us:8080/beri_prod/PKG_WEB_NAME_SRCH_INQ.LOGIN
Search any
registered business entity, corporation, registered agent in Orgon.
Oregon
Professional Licenses
Portal to on-line
licensee information for numerous state license categories.
http://lic.oregon.gov/lic/index.cfm?fuseaction=category
A very long list
of all on-line license categories. Availability expanding.
MAPS /
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS (GIS)
Basic Internet
Mapping
Maps, driving
directions, advertisement.
Metro Regional
Government Portland area maps.
http://www.metro-region.org/pssp.cfm?ProgServID=7
Links to Metro
Regional GIS server.
Portland GIS
Server.
Maps, assessor
information, aerial photos, crime report server.
Washington
County Maps - GIS
http://www.co.washington.or.us/deptmts/lut/gis/intermap/map_land.htm
Clackamas
County Maps - GIS
http://www.co.clackamas.or.us/gis/new.htm
Jackson County
Smart Map - GIS
Deschutes
County GIS
Search Tip:
Many GIS systems are coming online publically. Google County Name plus State
plus "GIS" or "Mapping".
Topozone
The Mapblast of
topological mapping.
Terraserver
http://terraserver.homeadvisor.msn.com/default.aspx
Microsoft's
collection of US aerial photography. Detailed and fun, but probably not for
court ready presentations. See also http://www.terraserver.com
a portal for
ordering high resolution aerial photos of selected U.S. cities.
U.S.
Geological Survey
All things
involving natural resources maps from the federal government. Detailed resource
for purchasing maps from USGS.
LIBRARIES /
NEWSPAPERS
ORBIS. Oregon
Statewide University Library Catalog
Combined library
catalog of 30 Northwest university libraries. A vast resource.
Multnomah
County Library
Click on
"Electronic Resources". Newspapers and magazines on-line. Full Text
Oregonian back to 1992. Full text New York Times. Many databases available only
to Multnomah County library card holders.
U.S. Newspaper
List
Find any
newspaper in the United States.
The Paperboy
Australian site
providing links to international papers around the world.
MEDSCAPE
National Library of Medicine
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hinfo.html
Search for
abstracts of thousands of medical journals. Drug lookup gives PDR type drug
information for any pharmaceutical. Accounts free.
LINKS TO LINKS
Jeff Flax's
Website
Links to criminal
defense legal and investigative resources from the Computer Administrator for
the Defender Services Division of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.
Search Systems
http://www.searchsystems.net/freepub.php
A very good compendium of links to national and
state government on-line resources.
Law Office of
Kim Kruglik
Another set of
links for criminal legal and investigative resources from an interested
attorney in San Francisco.
Virtual
Gumshoe
A mixed bag of
links for investigators. Some very useful gems.
Crimelynx
A compendium of
criminal defense resources for the investigator and attorney. Stronger on
attorney resources and criminal justice policy, although the investigator sites
are tried and true.
Virtual Chase
I really like
this site. Legal professionals internet research and investigation portal.
Articles and policy discussion regarding the changing world of on-line research
for legal professionals. Greatest virtue is that it is kept up to date.
Public Data
Center
http://www.publicdatacenter.com
More criminal
justice resource links, of mixed value, sorted by state. Fairly up to date, but
not entirely comprehensive.
MISCELLANEOUS
Resident Agent
Listings
http://www.residentagentinfo.com
Links to state
Resident Agent lookups for 47 of 50 states, with some gaps or restrictions.
Essential to serving subpoenas on business entities.
United States
Code : Cornell Law School LLI
Complete and
searchable current U.S. Code.
Public School
Locator
http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch
Find Any public
school in the nation, based on city name.
T.R.A.C.
Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse
Federal
government law enforcement and prosecutions statistics and research, nationwide
and by federal district. Very interesting.
Military
Records: National Personnel Records Center:
http://www.archives.gov/facilities/mo/st_louis.html
Information,
forms, procedures for ordering separated military personnel files.
Network
Solutions: WHOIS:
http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/whois/index.jhtml
Lookup for
operator registration information for websites, by web address / domain name.
DNA Services
Sites -
Forensic
Analytical
Serological
Research Institute (SERI):
Zeno's
Forensic Page
http://forensic.to/forensic.html
Exhaustive set of
links to forensics experts and resources in criminal law. Improbably from Dr.
Zeno Geradts, a PhD in the Netherlands.
Firearms
Identification
A souped up tour
of the forensic science of firearms identification, marking, and bullet ID. For
gun geeks and experts.
SecurityArms -
Firearms pictures
A huge collection
of decent firearms photos. Searchable by model. For the full list of photos
see: securityarms.com/20010315/all.htm.
FAA Civil
Aircraft Registration
http://162.58.35.241/acdatabase/defimg.asp
All registered non-military
aircraft in the United States. I have yet to need this for any case, but I am
still awed that you can get information about every public aircraft registered
to Southwest Airlines on your desktop.