Private Eye Says TV Gumshoes Are Clueless

Television gumshoes like Thomas Magnum, Remington Steele and Mike Hammer are no role models for Russell Noragon.

Noragon said he doesn’t think much of programs about private investigators.

“Most of them take artistic license; they give us all a black eye,” said the former sheriff’s deputy who has been a Ventura County private investigator for 23 years.

People are generally fascinated by the industry, mostly because they don’t know what it’s really like, he said.

Sure, a movie or TV stakeout seems exciting. But try sitting in a minivan for 11 hours a day, said the 56-year-old Camarillo resident. And when the temperature exceeds 100 degrees, it’s even worse.

To keep himself alert during a long surveillance, Noragon listens to police calls or news radio. Regardless, it can get boring.

Noragon is one of 338 private investigators licensed in Ventura County, many of whom come from a law enforcement background.

His career with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department was cut short when Noragon was injured while wrestling with a prisoner during an escape attempt at the Ventura County Jail. A few years later, in 1977, he took early retirement and became a private investigator.

“I believe he is one of the best,” said Ventura trial lawyer Fred Bysshe, past president of the Ventura County Bar Assn. “He is a consummate professional in terms of being honest, intelligent and able to handle sensitive situations. And he does not cross the bounds of doing anything that is illegal or unethical.”

That rules out many of the investigating tricks commonly shown on television, such as using remote listening devices or recording conversations without either party’s consent.

But he does sit in his nondescript van, which has both dark-tint windows and black drapes, when he needs to watch folks. A typical surveillance would involve someone who had filed a worker’s compensation claim for a serious injury.

“Videotaping is OK, but you have to record in public view. If they come up to the windows of the van, they can see me in there,” he said.

Noragon prides himself on never having to have drawn his weapon during his 6 1/2 years with the Sheriff’s Department.

He still has a license to keep a concealed weapon, but as an investigator he doesn’t carry it. His 9-millimeter Beretta remains stashed in his van, and he has never had cause to use it.

“In case I see a situation where deadly force would be required, that’s the only time I would take my gun out,” said Noragon, adding that he still feels a fraternal bond with law enforcement officers.

And wild car chases don’t happen too often either.

“There are times when you’re doing a surveillance--those can get risky--trying to keep up with someone in traffic and not get noticed,” said Noragon, who stays at least three or four cars back when tailing a subject.

With more than 100 local attorneys making up the majority of his clientele, Noragon said he has investigated everything from murders and robberies to traffic accidents and unfaithful spouses. He will work for either a plaintiff’s or a defendant’s lawyer.

“I work both sides of the street to keep myself honest,” Noragon said. “In our line of work, we have to remain objective and unbiased. I turn in evidence to attorneys, and they deal with it--good or bad.”

Adjustments Had to Be Made

Noragon said that as a sheriff’s deputy he was trained to investigate crimes and lock up criminals. But he had to make adjustments as a private investigator.

“All too often, you start developing tunnel vision. You look for items that are going to make your suspect guilty. But that only creates holes in your case that are subject to attack,” he said.

Along with criminal and civil cases, Noragon said about 5% of his business comes from individuals who hire him to find long-lost relatives, check on unfaithful spouses or catch dishonest employees.

Trial attorney Richard Regnier, a former deputy district attorney in Ventura, said Noragon “exemplifies what a P.I. should be. Russ is straight up and very competent.”

Regnier said he once offered Noragon an environmental crime case, and the fees could have totaled tens of thousands of dollars.

“He would have been working on it for a year and a half--that’s the kind of assignment that makes most investigators salivate,” Regnier said.

But Noragon turned it down and referred Regnier to a competitor he believed would be better qualified.

“I know a lot of investigators who would have grabbed it and tried their best,” Regnier said.

Noragon earns $75 an hour, plus mileage and expenses. But not all of his time in an average 40-hour work week can be billed to clients.

To build goodwill and increase business, his fee for some assignments is kept low. For instance, locating someone who has gone into hiding to avoid a subpoena could cost as little as $100.

Computers have made it easier for Noragon to do his job. He can quickly access a large number of databases needed to find people for subpoenas and interviews, a task that takes about 25% of his time.

But the Internet also gives him some competition. Now a legal secretary or a law clerk can log onto sites like Lexis-Nexis to find information about people.

“When someone calls my office and wants to find so-and-so, I find out why. If they can’t convince me that it is for a legitimate reason, I don’t take the job,” said Noragon, adding that he uses e-mail to warn other investigators when he has suspicions about a potential client.

Even after two decades, Noragon said he still enjoys the variety of his work and the challenge of putting cases together so he can testify in court.

But most of the time, the work is mundane. A typical day for him includes checking his e-mail, tracking down people and arranging interviews.

“For every 30 minutes I do an interview, there’s 30 minutes of report writing--they don’t show that on TV,” he said.

The most frightening thing that happened to him occurred shortly after he began wearing a vibrating pager in the early 1990s. His client had been severely injured when her car hit a large truck tire that had fallen onto a freeway. In trying to locate the trucking company responsible, Noragon found information on the errant tire that led him to the company’s facility in Orange County.

As he walked around looking for similar truck tires--and watching for guard dogs--his pager went off.

“Because I had my mind set on dogs, I thought a dog bit me and I almost jumped out of my shoes,” he said.

The real thrill for Noragon comes on days that he flies his homemade airplane--a two-seater with a Volkswagen engine that won first place at Camarillo Airport’s Father’s Day show last year. Noragon, who uses the propeller plane to take aerial photos of traffic accident sites, said he loves to fly.

“Lately, I’ve learned how to do pumpkin bombing,” said Noragon, who uses the orange gourds to hit targets in open fields. He said he likes to bomb near cows so they can eat the smashed pumpkins.

The state Bureau of Security and Investigative services, which monitors California’s 9,452 private investigators, said no complaints have been filed against Noragon, but having a clean slate is fairly common.

Regnier said Noragon, a soft-spoken man who stands about 5 feet 10, is not threatening to people, and they are typically willing to share information with him.

No Place for Emotions

“Once you involve your emotions, you don’t look at all aspects of the case--you become an advocate,” said Noragon, who attributes his demeanor to his Navy submarine training on how to remain calm in a crisis and his father, who was also even-tempered.

However, Noragon’s wife said she sometimes wishes he would show more emotion. “But that was his upbringing,” said Mary Jo Noragon, his wife of six years.

Russell Noragon said he enjoys his career so much that he has tried to involve his son, Lee, 32, and daughter, Macie, 29, but they each have other careers.

Now, he said, his dream is to break in a younger investigator who could take over the business, while Noragon would serve as a consultant.

“I want to semi-retire and get ‘fun money’ to build another airplane.”

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About This Series

“On the Job” is an occasional series about working people in Ventura County and how their lives have been shaped, challenged and enriched by what they do. This installment focuses on the work experiences of Camarillo private investigator Russell Noragon.