The Sound of Pursuit

1986, Northern Ireland. A British spy is found dead by a desolate country lane — murdered by the IRA. Decades later, his killing set in motion the largest murder investigation ever in Britain and provoked painful national soul-searching about what spies should be allowed to to while serving their countries. Join Hal and his guest, author and journalist Henry Hemming , to talk about Hemming's...

Join host Hal Humphreys and his guest, Ramesh Nyberg, as they talk about Nyberg's  experiences in Florida law enforcement, including 22 years as a Miami homicide detective. In his new book, Badge Tie, and Gun: Life and Death Journeys of a Miami Detective , Nyberg shares what he's learned from nearly three decades on the force. It's full of great stories for true crime fans—and inves...

Join host Hal Humphreys and his guest, Philip Becnel, as they talk about how and why to document your investigation. Becnel is managing partner of Dinolt, Becnel & Wells Investigative Group in the D.C. area and the author of two books: Introduction to Conducting Private Investigations and Principles of Investigative Documentation , first published in 2012. Becnel has written a new edition (of...

Surveillance: a French loaner word derived from the verb, "surveiller" — "to oversee/watch." Thanks to a few terrible PI reality shows, most of the world thinks catching cheaters is all P.I.s do. In fact, some investigators do specialize in domestic surveillance. Others, including Hal and John, have taken occasional surveillance assignments over the years, often in cases involv...

What's attorney-client privilege and work product? When should you deliver written vs. oral reports? Should you document all witness interviews? What information is discoverable? Join Hal Humphreys and John Nardizzi with their guest, defense attorney Jennifer Sunderland, as they talk about what private investigators need to know about rules of professional conduct when they work with attorney...

What's the best way to keep your clients out of prison? Prevent them from being charged in the first place. Join Hal Humphreys and John Nardizzi with their guest, Steve Mason, as they talk about pre-charge investigations — and why it's ideal to start defending clients before they're even charged. 🔔 SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel to watch these episodes:   /pieducation ✅ NEED INV...

What's the best way to market yourself as a professional investigator? A well-executed website is a great place to start. Join hosts Hal Humphreys and John Nardizzi and their guest, Brian Willingham, for a frank conversation about how they have built strong brands online by writing well, being generous with information, and letting their true selves shine through on their company sites. Brian...

Boston area attorney and investigator John Nardizzi recaps a recent Innocence Network conference he attended and chats with Hal about the risks and rewards of innocence investigations. The Innocence Network Conference: https://innocencenetwork.org/subcategory/conference-2022 Hal Humphreys ("The Beard") and John Nardizzi ("The Dome") co-host The Sound of Pursuit podcast (almost)...

A client offers you lots of money to  surveil someone but not much detail on the subject or the reason for the investigation. Do you take the case? You might want to do a little more due diligence. In this episode, Hal and John talk about cases like these, in which government actors from Iran and China have hired unwitting private investigators to gather intel on dissidents living in the U.S. Hal...

In this episode, we'll explore how one man's outlaw behavior on behalf of his high-profile clients shaped the public's perception of private investigators as shady and unscrupulous operators.  Hal Humphreys ("The Beard") and John Nardizzi ("The Dome") host The Sound of Pursuit podcast (almost) each week. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *...

Lawsuits are war. There's a lot of money at stake. These are often big, complex cases with a lot of moving parts, involving far-flung witnesses and deep-dive research. Pursuit editor Hal Humphreys and Boston PI John Nardizzi talk about how to work cases like toxic torts, harassment cases, medical malpractice, and wrongful death suits.    Hal Humphreys ("The Beard") and John Nardizzi...

Hal Humphreys and John Nardizzi share their origin stories — of how they found their calling as private investigators.   Hal Humphreys ("The Beard") and John Nardizzi ("The Dome") host The Sound of Pursuit podcast each week. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Pursuit Magazine and PI Education are part of StoryboardEMP, a media an...

Boston PI and author John Nardizzi and Pursuit editor Hal Humphreys chat about junk science — so-called forensic techniques that are based on little more than faith and hokum. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Hal Humphreys and John Nardizzi host The Sound of Pursuit podcast each week. Join us for the live broadcast on YouTube, or drop by any time...

Hal Humphreys and John Nardizzi, a Boston-area investigator and author, reflect on work, joy, and the movie "The Menu." Sometimes the pressures to "succeed" in a career can make us forget the love that carried us into a calling in the first place. How can we find the joy again? * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Pursuit...

This week, in the void between holidays, Hal slows it down a notch and sums up a few takeaways from the year. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Pursuit Magazine and PI Education are part of StoryboardEMP, a media and education company in Nashville, TN. Pursuit, a free online magazine for private investigators, explores all things investig...

Hal hosts author Gilbert King , whose Pulitzer Prize -winning book, Devil in the Grove, led to the exonerations of four Black men falsely accused of rape in 1949. King is also writer, producer, and host of " Bone Valley ," a new true-crime podcast that uncovers astonishing details of the wrongful murder conviction of Leo Schofield — and evidence pointing to the real killer. It's riv...

Hal talks with Bay-Area PI Mike Spencer about his podcast, “ The Gary Murphy Assassination: A San Francisco Cold Case ,” and how obsession fuels his creative work. Mike Spencer is a former crime-beat journalist who rinsed off the ink and turned his skills to private investigation in the 1990s. He’s also a writer, colleague, friend, and longtime contributor to Pursuit . In this episode, we’re askin...

This episode explores the things we hide from the people we love most, when the truth is too terrible to bear. Everybody lies. We lie to protect people from painful truths and to preserve the family name. We lie about affairs, flirtations, and addictions. Sometimes, we even lie to ourselves. In this episode, we’ll hear two stories about family secrets—and the blurry line between deception and delu...

5 Stories about Life and Love, Human Connection and Extracurricular Romance, and One Super-Sad Surveillance Job Sometimes connections can feel tenuous. It takes effort to keep the signal strong. The relationship can get lost in the white noise of day-to-day. Distractions sometimes lead to new connections, and connections, even the strongest of family connections, can sometimes lead to distraction....

At a live storytelling event in Nashville, private investigator Hal Humphreys tells his story of a stolen-goods sting operation gone right, then wrong, then right. Thanks to Jakob Lewis and the Neighbors Podcast for collaborating on this episode. 

We sent producer Jakob Lewis in search of the facts behind fact-checking. He discovered how high the stakes can be when we confuse fact with faith. Editors and publishing houses, investigators and police detectives—we all get the facts wrong sometimes. Even professionals ignore facts and hold onto tidy lies, for all sorts of reasons: To close a high-pressure case. To make the client happy. Or to m...

As PIs, we all have our greatest hits—tales we tell over and over. Mike Spencer's craziest go-to story has all the elements: Paranoia. Porn. Aliases. Bodily fluids. You get the picture. Pursuit editor Kim Green met Spencer, an ex-journo veteran Bay-Area investigator, in San Francisco’s Mission District in 2014. He kindly agreed to share a few tales from his “Best Of” list. Host: Hal Humphreys...

In the summer of 2008, the original editor of Pursuit Magazine posted an article with the following headline: “Locating Mobile Phones Through Pinging and Triangulation.” That is, finding someone you’re looking for by turning that person’s cell phone into a kind of homing device. Over the years, that article set a record for the most hits of any PursuitMag story ever...and it's still getting l...

In this episode, we explore how investigators search for people who've gone missing.  You’ll hear about people lost and found: a Father’s Day story about a long-lost dad, a reporter’s tale of chasing a Dark Web black marketeer’s trail, and the incredible secrets of how big data aggregators work. Sponsored by TransUnion | TLO Host: Hal Humphreys Music provided by Jason White (who composed our...

In sxn 1 ep 2, we profile Norma Tillman, a private investigator who specializes in finding people—without resorting to lies or trickery. When Norma Tillman started her career in law enforcement, she had to learn fast how to play up her advantages. At 5’2″, she’d never be as physically strong as most of her male colleagues. But she had mad skills: Diplomacy. Tenacity. Smarts. And a healthy self-est...