Phillip Garrido brought the young girls that he fathered with Jaycee Dugard to the UC campus in Berkeley on August 24. While there, he met a police officer named Lisa Campbell who asked him to return for a meeting the next day. Campbell was suspicious of his unusual behavior, and noted that the girls should have been in school.

Later that night, Officer Campbell ordered a Comprehensive Background Check and discovered something disturbing. Phillip Garrido was a registered sex offender who was still required to check in with a parole officer.

The following day Campbell brought a colleague, Officer Allison Jacobs, to the meeting with Phillip Garrido. When he left, the women called Garrido’s parole officer to report his actions and ask about his daughters. They were stunned to be told that he did not have any children.

Based on this call, the parole officer set up a meeting with Garrido, which led to an investigation and arrest. Since then, Phillip and Nancy Garrido have been held in custody awaiting a trial. The prosecution intends to prove that Phillip Garrido is a highly manipulative individual who brain-washed Jaycee Dugard, but his public defender, Susan Gellman, hopes to prove otherwise.

Gellman’s plan is to state that Phillip Garrido suffers from severe mental illness. She will insist that he did not have the capacity to realize that he was doing wrong and he should be treated as a patient, not a criminal.

One of the points Gellman is expected to emphasize is that Garrido claims to have communicated with angels who live underground for many years. He proclaimed that these angels frequently spoke to him at night and even self-published a manifesto about their conversations, which he personally delivered to the FBI a few days before he was arrested.

Whether or not this defense will hold up in court remains to be seen. The prosecution asserts that since Garrido and his wife lived a somewhat normal life while detaining Jaycee Dugard in a backyard shanty for so long, their actions must have been calculated. They are also expected to point out that Garrido had plans in place to hide Dugard and the children if the police or unexpected visitors ever arrived.

We’ll be watching closely as the trial against Phillip and Nancy Garrido begins. Our hopes are with Jaycee Dugard and her family, and that the end of this hearing will bring them peace and comfort.

Read more about the kidnapping of Jaycee Dugard

Read about how Jaycee Dugard became free

Collecting public records on your own is difficult. We can help.

We live in the information age, a time when people are able to get almost any type of data they want from thousands of sources. This wealth of information has generated a new challenge: finding data that is complete, accurate and reliable.

Many companies sell public records, but they are often accused of providing inaccurate, incomplete or outdated information. These companies don’t always own the data they sell, and sometimes utilize a “bait and switch” tactic to get people to purchase multiple reports. They do this by displaying a teaser that indicates a lot of information is available, but when a customer purchases a report they discover that they must buy several more to get all the details. This leaves people with two choices: order reports from a public records company and hope for the best, or try to find the information they need on their own.

One of the biggest problems people encounter when searching for information themselves is that there is an intimidating amount of data available, and it is scattered over innumerable locations. People who attempt to find accurate details about individuals or businesses frequently discover that the search can be exasperating. Social profiles often provide information that is incomplete or inaccurate, and obtaining public records from government agencies can be difficult and time consuming.

To complicate matters, some of the data people have access to is not complete or correct. A recent Wall Street journal article reported that arrest records aren’t always ‘by the book’.  It stated that a famous 1967 report about crime statistics in the U.S. was seriously flawed, and that criminal data may be even more unreliable today. Law enforcement agencies throughout the country don’t follow a uniform system for calculating and reporting data, and this directly affects the criminal information that public records companies provide.

Another issue that makes collecting and displaying criminal information difficult is determining what should be listed in a report and what should not. These days it’s easy to get a background check to learn more about anyone’s past, and these reports often show criminal records even when the charges were dismissed or the circumstances were trivial (such as a traffic violation).

The problem is that many reports do not differentiate between what is and is not a criminal offense. This is causing people to want to take control over what information is available about them. One  Wall Street Journal story explains that many people are attempting to expunge even the most minor infractions so the details won’t be publicly available.

Criminal reports aren’t the only difficult aspect for public records; even the most basic information presents problems. Every person generates thousands of records in their lifetime, and they are not always consistent. For example, an individual may have several variations on their name, phone numbers may or may not include an area code, people entering data make mistakes, numbers are easily transposed … there are many potential issues.

Every problem needs a solution, and that’s why PeopleFinders is dedicated to providing the most accurate and detailed information available. To achieve this goal we own and maintain the web’s largest database of public records. We have access to more than 40 years of historical data, which allows us to create comprehensive documents about individual and businesses. This sets us apart from companies that only provide a limited amount of data or try to get you to purchase multiple reports – we offer everything you need to know in one convenient and easy-to-understand report.

First we collect every relevant piece of information, sort it, fix spelling errors, create a uniform format to display the data and insert it into appropriate categories. Next we meticulously search through this data to ensure we only utilize relevant information. The criminal data mentioned earlier provides a good example. When creating documents such as a “Stud Or Dud” report (which thoroughly examines any person’s past to create a clear profile of their background) our system eliminates minor violations and only keeps serious offenses, such as a felony charge.

Presenting the data provides another major challenge. We refine our reports to make them clear, concise and easy to read. Even reports that are likely to contain a large amount of information, such as a Marriage Search report, are displayed in a manner that makes all the information easy to find and understand.

The art of collecting, sorting and presenting public records may not be perfect yet, but by putting in the time, effort and resources it is possible to offer valuable and accurate information. PeopleFinders is up to this task, and we continually strive to find to provide you with the best source of public records available anywhere. Thank you for turning to us for your public records needs, and for reading the PeopleFinders People Search blog.

Deloitte is not a typical company – it is a business entity that works with thousands of professionals from independent firms all over the world to provide audit, financial advisory, tax and other services to their clients. Every year Deloitte releases their list of the 500 fastest-growing technology based companies in the United States and Canada. PeopleFinders was happy to be on that list in 2008, and it feels great to be included again!

The dedicated folks at Deloitte have diligently kept track of the 500 fastest growing companies for more than a decade. They created their Fast 500 TM list in 1997, and its annual release has become a highly anticipated event. Winners of the 2009 Fast 500 TM were announced in October, so congratulations to all of the companies who earned their way onto the list.

There are ten categories on the Fast 500 TM List, and PeopleFinders won as an Internet based company. The list is based on the fiscal growth a company experiences over a 5-year period, so only the fastest growing companies are represented. Very few companies make it into the Fast 500 TM two years in a row, so this is quite an honor for us.

According to Deloitte’s list, PeopleFinders.com has grown by 257% over the last five years. This is remarkable, and we have you to thank. It’s the people who have trusted us to help them find other people all over the United States that made this accolade possible.

We’re always excited when we are able to help someone find family or friends that they’ve lost touch with over the years. Our goal is to help you find anyone, anywhere with the most useful and easy-to-use People Search, Background Check and Public Records services available today.

Thank you for helping us claim a spot on the Fast 500 List again this year, and thank you for reading our People Search blog.

Choosing A Costume

Half the fun of Halloween is dressing up, and kids can be very opinionated about what or whom they want to be. Parents often go through a lot of trouble to put these costumes together, but safety should always be one of the key components.
When you’re shopping for a costume, check the label to see if it is fire retardant. Your kids may be running past jack-o-lanterns with candles inside, so fire safety is essential. If the costume includes a mask, make sure your child can see through it clearly. You may have to expand the eyeholes yourself, but the mask must provide a clear line of vision.

Another consideration is how well others will be able to see your child’s costume at night. Many costumes come in darker colors, so it’s a good idea to add reflective tape so they will stand out to motorists. If the costume includes a prop like a toy sword or axe, make sure it is soft, flexible and not too large for your child.

Prepare For The Big Night
Before anyone sets out to collect goodies, decide which blocks you will visit. Once you determine your route, you can take a few extra precautions such as checking for registered sex offenders in the area, or running a background check on any address along your path.

It gets dark early in October, so trick-or-treaters should always have at least one good flashlight to help them see where they are going, and to help others see them. Don’t forget to load it with fresh batteries. Someone in the group should also carry a cell phone at all times, in case of an emergency.

Trick Or Treat!
An adult or older kid should always accompany young children when they go out on Halloween evening. It’s also a good idea to give each child a piece of paper with their name and your phone number, so a responsible adult will be able to contact you if your child gets separated from the group.

Street safety is essential on Halloween, so the chaperone should get everyone together and make sure the road is completely safe before anyone crosses. It’s best to keep everyone on the sidewalk for most of the journey, but now and then you will have to cross a street to get to more houses. Speaking of those houses, remind your children that it is never okay to enter a stranger’s home, and if an adult they don’t know tries to convince them to come inside the best thing to do is run away.

The Sweet, Sweet Aftermath
As soon as the trick-or-treating is over, kids will want to dive into their goody bags, but a responsible adult needs to look through the candy first. Give the kids some of your own candy to tide them over, but check out the snacks and make sure every treat is individually wrapped. If anything looks like it may have been tampered with, don’t take a risk, throw it away. Adults should also make sure younger kids don’t have hard candies that could be a choking hazard.

One final child safety tip is to explain to your children that Halloween is the only time when it is acceptable to take treats from people they don’t know. Compare the night to other annual holidays, and be clear that it is not usually okay to accept anything from a stranger.

Have a safe and thrilling Halloween, and thank you for reading the PeopleFinders People Search blog.

One such customer was a man named Johnny Wright. He visited the restaurant where Rebecca worked, Ernie’s Steak House, several times to ask her out. Wright also called the steakhouse repeatedly because Rebecca refused to give him her personal phone number. Rebecca finally had enough; she agreed to go out with him for a drink to explain that she just wasn’t interested.

On August 5, the pair spent some time together at a local bar. No one knows what she said to Wright that night, but whatever it was must have upset him. It would be the last time anyone ever saw Rebecca Doisy alive.

Police began to investigate the disappearance of Rebecca Doisy, and they were pointed in the direction of Johnny Wright. Several witnesses admitted to seeing him hassle her at work, and others had seen them at the bar that night in August. Officers looked for Wright, but he stayed away from work for several days and could not be found. When he finally emerged, the suspect was brought in for questioning.

Johnny Wright took a polygraph test and the results indicated that he was lying, but the police did not have enough evidence so he was let go. Wright’s previous criminal history helped make him a person of great interest in the case, but over the next few years no new leads were found and the investigation went cold.

In 1985 investigators finally caught a big break.  Johnny Wright’s former roommate, Harry Moore, told officers that he had seen Rebecca’s body in Johnny Wright’s car, and that Wright had admitted to killing her. Police were skeptical at first and Moore became a suspect, but the evidence they had matched his story and they set out to find Wright.

A nationwide manhunt began, and officers hoped to finally bring a case that started nearly a decade earlier to an end. They hoped to get Wright in custody quickly and finally learn what had happened to Rebecca, whose body had never been found. The FBI ran fingerprint searches and authorities in every state were on the lookout. After a long, intensive search the results were: nothing. Johnny Wright seemed to either be dead or out of the country.
As the years passed, Rebecca Doisy’s family tried to find peace, but the pain of her disappearance and not knowing what became of her always remained. In time they came to accept that the case would never be solved, and Wright would never be brought to justice.

In 2009 a 65-year-old man entered a police station in Atlanta, Georgia to order a criminal background check on himself. He needed the report for a potential job as a truck driver. The man showed his identification, made his request and was told to return the next day. Officers ran the background check, and immediately saw a red flag.

The man was Johnny Wright. His ID was less than a week old, and contained his real name. When Wright returned for his report he was placed under arrest for the murder of Rebecca Doisy.

Officers in Columbia were stunned to hear the news. Their investigation had begun more than 30 years ago, and they had no active leads. Now their suspect was in custody after visiting a police station. One officer noted with amazement that Wright had “paid $15 to get arrested”.

Doisy’s family was even more shocked, and relieved. At long last they would have answers about a crime that haunted them for so long.

Many crimes go unsolved, and you never know who might be living in your neighborhood. A criminal background check can help you find out if someone nearby was ever arrested and convicted, and give you the information you need to help keep your family safe. It’s an effective tool that is used by law enforcement agencies worldwide to find and track criminals before they can strike again.

Our hearts go out to the family of Rebecca Doisy; may they finally get the closure they need after their nightmarish ordeal. Be careful about whom you associate with, get the information you need to stay safe and thank you for reading the PeopleFinders People Search blog.

Read More Crime Related Articles:

Jennifer Schuett – A Rape Victim Fights Back
The Kidnapping of Jaycee Dugard

Officer Lisa Campbell first met Garrido at The University of California on August 24th. Garrido had his daughters with him when he approached Campbell to discuss setting up an event on the college campus. Campbell noticed that something seemed very unusual about the girls, and noted that they should have been in school. She asked Garrido to return the next day to discuss his event.

That night officer Campbell ran a Background Check on Garrido, and found out that he was a Registered Sex Offender. In 1976 Garrido was arrested for kidnapping and raping a woman, and later sentenced to 50 years in prison. He was let out early after convincing authorities that he had changed his life around and deserved a second chance. Although he was a free man, Garrido still checked in with a parole officer in 2009.

Garrido returned to the Berkeley campus on August 25th, and Lisa Campbell brought along fellow police officer Allison Jacobs to meet him. During the meeting, Jacobs spoke with the girls and was told that they were home schooled along with a third sister who was not present. Jacobs noticed that the girls exhibited strange behaviors such as only giving one-word answers and either staring intently at the officers or Garrido. Both girls also looked very pale and sickly.

After the meeting, Jacobs called Garrido’s parole officer to explain what had happened. The parole officer informed her that Garrido didn’t have any children – a fact that Jacobs claimed stopped her “dead in her tracks”. This phone call led to the scheduling of another meeting with Garrido, along with Dugard and their daughters. Dugard was introduced as Garrido’s wife ‘Allissa’, but eventually he admitted that he had kidnapped her years ago. The FBI was called in, and the 1991 disappearance of Jaycee Dugard was finally solved.

We can all be thankful that Lisa Campbell had the presence of mind to order a Background Check on Phillip Garrido. It allowed her to discreetly learn about his criminal history and bring closure to a traumatic event for the Dugard family. People often rely on Background Reports when they need to find out more about anyone they know personally or professionally because they provide details about bankruptcies, criminal records and other information you need to make an informed decision. The information officer Campbell received helped lead to the arrest of a true predator.

Today Jaycee Dugard has been reunited with her family, and her daughters have finally met their grandmother and step-grandfather. It was an emotional scene, and one filled with both joy and pain. Although Dugard is happy to be back with her mother, her life with Garrido is all she has known for the last 18 years. The situation is even worse for her daughters – their father has been arrested on charges of kidnapping and raping their mother.

There may be no easy end to the story of Jaycee Dugard and her children. For now, all we can do is wish them well as they try to recover from this nearly 2-decade ordeal. As the world watches the events of this horrifying story unfold, we all send our hopes, prayers and best wishes out to the entire Dugard family. Thank you for reading the PeopleFinders.com People Search blog.

Dugard was held inside a small shed that was well hidden in the backyard of a home in Antioch, California. Her alleged captors, Phillip and Nancy Garrido, kept her out of sight so efficiently that no one suspected they had a kidnap victim locked away on their property.

Phillip Garrido fathered 2 girls with Dugard, and they would lead to his eventual capture. The girls, now 11 and 15 years old, accompanied Garrido to the University of California in Berkeley where he was handing out religious pamphlets. Officers on the campus felt he was acting in a suspicious manner towards the girls, and stopped him for questioning.

After running a Background Check, the officers discovered that Phillip Garrido is a Registered Sex Offender still on federal parole for rape and kidnapping. Garrido was brought in for a parole meeting, and Jaycee accompanied him with their daughters. Jaycee identified herself as his wife “Allissa”, but during the meeting Garrido admitted that he had kidnapped her nearly 2 decades ago.

Currently, both Phillip and Nancy Garrido have been arrested and face several charges, including kidnapping with the intent to commit robbery and rape. Dugard was finally able to enjoy a reunion with her family, after so many years apart.

A mother and daughter were reunited, and grandchildren were introduced for the first time. Jaycee Dugard has a difficult period of adjustment ahead – the only home she has known for 18 years was a small shed – but in the end all that really matters is the family is able to continue with their lives together again.

At least one of Phillip Garrido’s neighbors heard children playing in the well concealed backyard area, but no one ever suspected he was hiding a kidnap victim. How well do you know the people who live near you? Sexual offenders could be in your own neighborhood, but luckily there is a way to find out.

Use a Sex Offender Search to learn if anyone around you has been convicted of a sexual crime, or choose a Membership to get all the information you need about anyone. Knowing who lives close to you will help you protect your family and loved ones. At PeopleFinders, we rejoice and celebrate the return of Jaycee Dugard, and encourage everyone to be safe and well informed.

Read an update about Jaycee Dugard here.

Background Checks provide you with a large amount of useful information. They contain basic details such as complete names, addresses, phone numbers and ages. You can also find out if someone has gone through bankruptcy, had a tax lien or other civil judgment issued against them, owns property or holds a professional business license. People also use Background Checks to see if someone is married or divorced, and to find out if they have active profiles on social networking sites. Your report will even tell you if the person has AKA’s, aliases or criminal records on file.

Name Search
It’s easy to order a Background Check, and the most common way to get started is with a Search by Name.  This lets you type in a first and last name, and you can include a city and state to get the best results possible. Fill in the details, click the ‘Search’ button and you’ll see a results page that shows everyone who matches your criteria. Review each one until you find the right person and click the ‘View Details’ button underneath their name. Next you can order the Background Report only, or add our beneficial Identity Protection service to help protect your personal credit rating and get 20% off! Complete your order to receive the most thorough Background Check available anywhere.

More Options
You might not know the last name of someone you want to learn more about, so we offer a variety of search alternatives to help you find the right person. You can search using an Address, even if it’s out of date, or try an Advanced Search which lets you enter additional facts to narrow down your results. If you know all the digits, you can also try a Phone Number Search, or even a Social Security Number Search. Use the option that’s best for you, or email our Customer Care Team if you have additional questions.

Whether you want to know more about a person’s past to make sure your interests are protected, find out if they are someone you want to deal with professionally or protect your loved ones, a Background Check helps you get the complete story on anyone and make well informed decisions. Get the facts you need, and thank you for reading the PeopleFinders.com People Search blog.

People Search By Name
The most common way to find people online is to do a Search by Name. This type of People Search lets you enter a first and last name, and the person’s most recent city and state if you know it. You can use a last name only, but providing more information will improve your results. Fill in the details you’re sure of, click the Search button and you’ll be shown a list of up to 100 people that match your criteria. Don’t worry if you’re not sure which one is the right person, you can order a report that includes information on all of them.

Other People Search Options
You may not remember the name of the person you hope to find, so we have other options to help. One way is to use an old address. Enter as much information as you can, including the zip code if possible, and you’ll get a list of all the people who lived at that residence. Seeing the names may jog your memory and help you locate the person you’re looking for. Another option is to search using an outdated phone number. You’ll see everyone who is associated with that number, so you can find the right person even if they haven’t used those digits in years.

An Email Search shows you how to contact someone online. You can find anyone’s Email using their name or address, or use an Email address to find more information about the owner. One of the most definitive ways to find people is with a Social Security Number. Every SSN is unique to one individual, so if you have that number you can find the exact person you want immediately.

Find Someone Using A Maiden Name
It’s easy to lose touch with someone, especially if they get married, change their name or move away. Finding a woman when all you have is her maiden name can be difficult, but with some patience and persistence you can use PeopleFinders.com to find anyone.

Start with an Advanced People Search and enter a maiden name and any other details you know for the best results. Depending on how common the name is, you’ll get a list of 1 to 100 people and you can request a single report for all of them. Look for an address you recognize, and if none of them seem familiar do an Address Search on each one to see all the people who resided there. Once you find the woman you’re searching for, you’ll get her married name and you can order a People Search or Comprehensive Background Report to find out how to contact her today.

We hope this has helped you learn how to find people using a People Search. Please feel free to leave a comment if you have other questions on how to find people online. Thank you for reading the PeopleFinders.com blog.

PeopleFinders is a highly trusted People Search site that helps you find anyone, anywhere and gives you access to more than 40 years worth of public records. That means we can dig deep and find most any piece of public information you’re looking for. People who are searching for lost connections usually have many questions, and when they visit us online we are able to provide the answers…

Can I find someone when all I have is an old phone number? Yes, with more than 4 decades of public records available, we can help. Use our Reverse Phone Lookup to enter any number and we’ll search through billions of files to put together a complete phone history of the person you’re looking for. You’ll get a list of every phone number associated with that person, including the most recent.

Is it possible to find people using an outdated address? Even if the person you’re looking for has moved several times over the years, you can find them today with an Address Search. Once you find them, you can also request their Email address or other information to help you reconnect.

How can I learn more about someone’s past? Since we have billions of historical records at our fingertips we can put together the most Comprehensive Background Check on anyone. Our background report shows you aliases, bankruptcies, tax liens and other hidden secrets from the past. We can also show you where to find all the profiles, blogs and other personal details people post online with a Social Networks Search.

Do you have ways to help keep my family safe? With so much historical data available we can give you important information that will help protect you and your family. We’ll tell you if someone you are doing business or socializing with has a Criminal Record, and if so, why. You can also learn if there are any registered sex offenders living near your home, work or school. PeopleFinders.com has the facts you need to help you make informed decisions.

There are many websites that provide basic information about people and public records, but at PeopleFinders.com our massive collection of historical data will give you the big picture about anyone. You can look deep into someone’s past, find people anywhere in the United States and have all of your questions answered in one place. It’s like having your own private investigator!

Thank you for reading the PeopleFinders.com People Search blog.