KY Private Investigator cheat sheet

KRS Chapter 329 governs private investigators in Kentucky; KRS 329.010 defines "private investigator" as a person who, for hire, investigates crimes, identity, employment, business conduct, or the location of persons or property.

KRS 329.020 establishes the Kentucky Board of Private Investigators within the Department of Professional Licensing; the Board adopts administrative regulations in 201 KAR Chapter 20.

KRS 329.040 requires licensure before practicing; unlicensed practice is a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class D felony for a subsequent offense.

A licensed private investigation company must be owned by a licensed private investigator; the company license and individual investigator licenses are separate credentials.

KRS 329.070 authorizes the Board to deny, suspend, or revoke a license for fraud in obtaining it, conviction of a felony, unethical conduct, or violation of Board regulations.

201 KAR 20:030 sets the pre-licensing training requirement: applicants complete a Board-approved course of study, historically set at 48 hours of instruction.

201 KAR 20:110 requires licensees to notify the Board of a change of name or address within a set period and to display the license number on advertising and business documents.

KRS 329.130 makes it unlawful to impersonate a peace officer or to use a badge or title implying law enforcement authority while acting as a private investigator.

Records of investigations must be maintained and made available to the Board on request; 201 KAR 20:130 sets the recordkeeping and reporting standards for licensees.

Minimum age is 21, the applicant must be a U.S. citizen or lawful resident, and must possess a high school diploma or equivalent.

Applicants must submit a completed Board application with fee, fingerprints, and a state and FBI criminal background check; felony convictions are a statutory bar unless the Board grants relief.

Pre-licensing training: completion of the Board-approved course (48 hours) and passage of the Board licensing examination are prerequisites to licensure.

Experience substitution: a specified number of years of law enforcement or investigative experience may substitute for part of the training requirement, subject to Board regulation.

A private investigator license is issued for a defined term (two years) and renews on the licensee's birthdate cycle; a late fee applies to expired licenses.

Continuing education: licensees must complete Board-approved CE hours each renewal cycle; certificates of completion must be retained and produced on audit.

A licensed investigator who supervises or employs other investigators may need a company license; the company must designate a licensed qualifying agent.

License status is public; the Board publishes disciplinary actions, and a suspended or revoked license may not be reissued without Board approval.

A licensee may not accept an assignment in which the licensee has a personal or financial interest adverse to the client without full written disclosure and consent.

Representing two clients with directly adverse interests in the same matter is prohibited; the conflict is non-consentable when confidential information from one would materially benefit the other.

Contingent compensation tied to the outcome of a criminal or investigative result is improper; fees must be disclosed and not contingent on testimony or findings.

A licensee must not communicate with a party the licensee knows to be represented by counsel about the subject of the representation without counsel's consent.

Confidential client information may not be disclosed except as required by law, Board subpoena, or to prevent imminent serious harm.

An investigator who is also a witness to a material fact should disclose that role to the client and to counsel, because it affects credibility and the scope of the engagement.

Gifts, gratuities, or referral fees to law enforcement, court personnel, or claims adjusters for case referrals violate professional conduct rules and may violate KRS Chapter 521 bribery statutes.

Withdrawal from an engagement is required when continuing would require illegal or fraudulent conduct; the client must be notified and records returned.

Kentucky felonies are classified A through D under KRS 532.060, with authorized sentences ranging from 20-50 years (Class A) to 1-5 years (Class D); misdemeanors are Class A (up to 12 months) and Class B (up to 90 days).

Warrantless arrest by a private citizen is limited to a breach of the peace committed in the citizen's presence; a private investigator has no greater arrest authority than any other citizen.

Search by a private investigator is governed by trespass and conversion law, not the Fourth Amendment, unless acting as an agent of the state or at police direction.

KRS 526.010 burglary requires unlawful entry into a building with intent to commit a crime; KRS 514.030 theft by unlawful taking grades by value thresholds.

KRS 529.010 promotes prostitution; KRS 530.020 incest; KRS 508.030 assault in the fourth degree is a Class A misdemeanor - relevant when documenting domestic matters.

KRS 439.340 parole and KRS 532.110 consecutive sentencing rules affect the practical value of evidence in a criminal referral.

An investigator who knowingly makes a false statement to law enforcement may be charged under KRS 523.020 (false swearing) or KRS 519.020 (bribing a witness).

Stolen property offenses under KRS Chapter 514 require knowledge that the property was stolen; possession of recently stolen goods creates a permissible inference but not a presumption.

Trespass requires unauthorized entry onto land; intrusion upon seclusion requires a reasonable expectation of privacy and is the tort most often pleaded against investigators.

KRS 446.070 creates a private right of action for violation of a statute, allowing a plaintiff to sue an investigator who violates licensing or surveillance statutes.

Kentucky recognizes the tort of invasion of privacy in four forms: intrusion, public disclosure of private facts, false light, and appropriation of name or likeness.

Defamation requires a false statement of fact, publication to a third party, fault, and damages; truth is an absolute defense, and opinion is not actionable.

Kentucky is a one-party consent state under KRS 526.020: a participant may record a conversation, but a non-participant may not eavesdrop.

KRS 526.060 prohibits installing a hidden camera in a bedroom, bathroom, or changing area; KRS 531.090 covers voyeurism.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1681, governs investigative consumer reports used for employment or credit; the subject must be notified and given access.

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and the Driver's Privacy Protection Act (18 U.S.C. § 2721) restrict obtaining financial records and motor vehicle records through pretexting.

Chain of custody documents each transfer of an item: date, time, from whom, to whom, purpose, and the unique item identifier; any gap must be explained on the record.

Physical evidence is packaged separately, sealed with tamper-evident tape, and initialed across the seal; biological evidence is air-dried and stored in paper, not plastic.

Digital evidence requires a forensic image with a hash value (MD5 or SHA-256) computed at acquisition and verified before analysis; the original is preserved unaltered.

Kentucky Rules of Evidence: KRE 901 requires authentication by evidence sufficient to support a finding that the item is what it purports to be; KRE 803(6) covers business records.

Best evidence rule, KRE 1002, requires the original writing, recording, or photograph to prove its content unless an exception applies.

Testimony must be limited to personal knowledge (KRE 602); an investigator may not vouch for a witness or opine on credibility.

A subpoena duces tecum compels document production; a subpoena ad testificandum compels appearance; failure to comply is contempt under KRS 421.150.

Notes and reports used to refresh recollection (KRE 612) must be produced to opposing counsel on request; the adverse party may inspect and cross-examine on them.

Mobile surveillance uses a minimum three-vehicle rotation on arterials and a two-vehicle rotation in light traffic; the lead vehicle never follows directly behind the subject.

Stationary surveillance requires a documented log of arrival, position, vehicle description, subject activity, and departure times, recorded contemporaneously.

Pretext interviews are lawful in Kentucky only if the investigator does not impersonate law enforcement, does not obtain protected records by deception, and does not commit a crime.

Non-custodial interviews require no Miranda warning; Miranda applies only to custodial interrogation by state actors, so a private investigator generally need not give it.

Interview structure: establish rapport, obtain a free narrative, then use open-ended follow-up and closed confirmation; record the exact words of admissions.

Eyewitness identification is unreliable; sequential presentation and double-blind administration reduce error, and confidence statements should be recorded verbatim.

Surveillance video must be time-synchronized and its source documented; gaps in recording must be noted in the report rather than edited out.

GPS tracking of a vehicle on public roads is generally lawful without a warrant (United States v. Jones concurrence), but attaching a device to a vehicle on private property may be trespass.

A report states who, what, when, where, how, and the source of each fact, separating observed facts from hearsay and from the investigator's conclusions.

Reports are written in past tense, first person, active voice, with exact quotations in quotation marks and no editorial adjectives.

Each report carries a case number, date of report, investigator name and license number, and page numbering with a total page count.

Corrections are made by strike-through with initials and date, never by erasure or overwriting; supplemental reports are used for later information.

Case files, notes, recordings, and photographs are retained for the period required by the client contract and Board regulation, generally a minimum of five years.

Records must be stored to preserve confidentiality; release requires client authorization or legal process, and a log records each disclosure.

Time and expense records must be contemporaneous and itemized, because they may be discoverable and are used to support billing and testimony.

A report should identify every exhibit by number and describe its chain of custody so the report and the evidence file cross-reference each other.