It’s an unusual job that requires a nun’s habit one day, white stockings and nurse’s cap the next, or a delivery agent’s brown shirt and shorts. But, for Sandra Parsons, it’s all in a day’s work.

For 25 years, no one has doubted Parsons as she assumes the roles of ordinary people to obtain information as a private detective.

“The key to fooling others is to believe it yourself,” Parsons said. “I have crawled under barbed wire, and done just about anything to finish a case.”

Parsons, the owner of Berkshire Investigations of Torrington, started working as a private investigator when her career as a police officer in San Diego took a turn.

“I’ve never regretted it,” Parsons said.

Since then she has investigated arsons, found dead-beat dads, espionage, child abuse and custody, cheating spouses, murder and embezzlement cases.

Twenty-five years ago, the industry was a male-dominated field, but there are many advantages of hiring a female detective, Parsons noted. Many clients prefer females, especially other females who find female detectives less intimidating and easier to talk to. Female detectives have greater success at disguising their identity because women are less likely to be suspected of trickery. Although the work is fictionalized and at time pokes fun, mystery novels have lent a lot of credibility to female detectives over the years.

“It was tough at first, but people learned quickly that I mean business. And I think my work speaks for itself,” Parsons said.

Her husband Paul was a great support for her on those tough days, she said.
Local criminal defense firms, public defenders, and insurance firms have hired Parsons as well as some celebrities including Mayor Ed Koch, Richard Simmons, Alexandra Paul from “Baywatch” and former San Francisco 49er linebacker Darren Comeaux.
She was proud to point out her work helped falsely-accused defendants regain their freedom.

“You have to peel back the layers,” she said.
Reviewing the state’s evidence carefully can lead to doorways that have yet to be opened.
“Small steps, careful steps bring results,” she said.

“I have worked all over the country and met so many interesting people,” she said.
Convicted criminals and the frustrated housewife alike need to find out information from court record searches to interviewing crucial witnesses, and the results can change a life.

Parsons has worked through several technological advances that have revolutionized the information industry. In days past, Parsons had to visit municipal record depositories on foot, but today, all she needs to do is click a mouse.

“Just about everything is online now. You have to know where to look,” she said.
By logging some time on the computer, you can easily determine your neighbor’s tax payments, the type of products a manufacturing group in Maine makes, and find records of a drunk driving arrest in Colorado in 1985.

Parsons is board certified by the Criminal Defense Investigation Training Council and a member of the Connecticut Association of Licensed Private Investigators.

Working for frustrated spouses, insurance companies or criminal defense attorneys, Parsons has learned a lot over the years.
“You have to treat people decently. You can’t be on a power trip,” she said.

Some of the more difficult cases are cheating spouses, and after 25 years, the compassion still bubbles up, she said.

“I have learned a lot about human nature and about myself too over the years. It’s been very gratifying work and I believe did a good job,” she said.

When asked if retirement is at hand, she laughed.

“I am not ready to quit yet. I’ll die with my binoculars in my hand,” she said.

The Register Citizen