About
Doug Roberts, private investigator for civil rights cases.
A private investigation practice in Sheridan, Wyoming, limited to civil rights cases and Section 1983 actions, serving attorneys, families, and individuals nationwide.
100%
Civil rights cases
The practice takes no other kind of investigation
§1983
The statute
42 U.S.C. § 1983, the law behind nearly every case
50
States
Investigations accepted nationwide
1871
Year enacted
Congress created the right to sue in the Civil Rights Act of 1871
One kind of case
Doug Roberts is a private investigator located in Sheridan, Wyoming. His practice, Civil Rights PI, is limited to a single field: civil rights investigations and actions brought under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983. He does not take domestic, insurance, corporate, or general investigative work.
That focus is deliberate. Lawsuits against police officers, jails, and local governments are governed by legal standards found nowhere else, and are met with defenses, above all qualified immunity, that turn on fine details of fact. An investigation in this field has to be planned around those standards from the first day.
Who the practice serves
The practice works with civil rights attorneys and law firms, with individuals and families who have not yet retained an attorney, and with advocacy organizations. Although it is located in Wyoming, it accepts civil rights investigations nationwide.
How the work is done
The first priority in every case is evidence that is about to disappear: video that will be overwritten, records that will be purged, and witnesses who will be harder to find with each passing month. Once that evidence is secured, the scene is documented, witnesses are interviewed, records are obtained, and the official account is tested against all of it.
The result is a written report that states the source of every finding, with exhibits prepared for use in court. If the evidence does not support a claim, the report says so. An honest assessment at the start serves a client better than an encouraging one.
What the practice is not
Civil Rights PI is a private investigation practice, not a law firm. Doug Roberts does not give legal advice and does not represent anyone in court. His work is to find, preserve, and document evidence for clients and their attorneys.
The approach
Focused, independent, and built for court.
Civil rights only
The practice handles civil rights cases and Section 1983 actions exclusively. No domestic, insurance, or corporate work.
Built around the law
Each investigation is planned around what the claim requires: the Graham factors, deliberate indifference, Monell, and qualified immunity.
Evidence preserved early
Video, records, and witnesses are identified first, before retention schedules and fading memories erase them.
Independent
The official account is tested against the evidence, and the findings are reported candidly, whichever way they point.
Court-ready work
Reports state the source of every finding, and exhibits are prepared for depositions, motions, and trial.
Nationwide
Based in Sheridan, Wyoming, with investigations accepted for attorneys and families in every state.
Services
Investigative services
Scene Investigation & Documentation
The place where it happened, measured, photographed, and diagrammed, so a judge or jury can see what each person could see, hear, and reach.
Learn moreWitness Location & Interviews
Finding the people who saw what happened, including those the official report left out, and recording what they know while they still remember it.
Learn moreVideo & Digital Evidence
Body camera, dash camera, surveillance, doorbell, and mobile phone video, located and preserved before it is overwritten, then assembled into a single timeline.
Learn morePublic Records & Document Requests
Incident reports, use-of-force reports, dispatch records, policies, training files, and jail logs, obtained through public records laws and organized for the case.
Learn moreOfficer & Agency Background Research
Prior lawsuits, complaints, discipline, certification history, and employment history for the officers and agencies involved.
Learn morePattern, Policy & Practice Evidence
Evidence that a violation was no accident: prior similar incidents, written policies, training gaps, and customs that support a claim against the agency itself.
Learn moreIndependent Case Review & Reinvestigation
A second, independent look at the official investigation: what was done, what was left undone, and where the report and the evidence disagree.
Learn moreLitigation Support for Attorneys
Investigative reports, exhibits, witness coordination, and testimony, from the first evaluation of a case through trial.
Learn more