Mistook said:
I can't find any info out there on the web. My understanding is that licensed private investigators can carry badges. Does the state issue those badges? And are they assigned badge numbers?
I have a scene where a cop needs to verify my PI's status. He doesn't believe the badge is real (because she's so young). Would he run a badge number, or the PI license, or what?
This would be the state of Illinois, by the way.
I suggest you call an Illinois police department. They can answer your questions.
In many states, mine included, it's against the law for a private detective to carry or display a badge of any kind. No one wants a private detective confused with a police officer. In some states, such as Wisconsin, a private detective can't even be licesned to carry a concealed weapon.
I'm sure it varies from state to state, but in the states I'm familiar with, a private detective carries no badge, but has a photo ID license issued by the state, which anyone can use to check his credibility.
In my state, a private detective can also work on the license owned by another private detective, which means he doesn't have to have five years of police training to get the license, but can still do questioning and stakeout work for a icensed PI.
I believe there are states that allow a private investigator to carry a badge, but most I've talked to think doing so is a very bad idea. If the state issues a badge, then carry it. If not, carry what they give you, which is almost always a credit card sized license, much like a driver's license.
This alone is not a carry permit, and there's a separate license for this, either laminated and much like a driver's license, or simply a piece of paper that you fold and carry.
But call the Illinois police department. That's probably the easiest way to get you answer for that state.