'Dog' Hunts Down, Growls at Bail Bondsman, Report

'Dog' hunts down, growls at bail bondsman, reporter


The call came on Tuesday. I looked at the caller ID and saw an unfamiliar area code and assumed it was a West Coast publicity agent returning a call for one of several entertainment stories I was working on.
Advertisement

The gruff voice on the other end, though, said, "I guess this is what you get for putting your phone number on your stories."

Dog had found me.

Reality show star Duane Chapman apparently was upset about some comments that local private investigator Steve Hedrick had made in a pair of articles I had written recently about him and the bail bonds business.

Hedrick, who tracks down fugitives for Allied Bail Bonds, makes his job seem like long stretches of boredom punctuated by occasional moments of mayhem, proclaiming himself as "just another old, fat, white guy trying to eke out a living."

Chapman's show, "Dog the Bounty Hunter," a hit on A&E (a joint venture of ABC, NBC and The Beaumont Enterprise's parent company, the Hearst Corp.), tells a different - and wild - story, full of chases, intrigue and action.

It's a thorn in Hedrick's side, as he claims that the leather clad ex-convict's exploits and over-the-top behavior cast the profession in a negative light.

"I don't approve of the way he acts, the way he dresses," the married, middle-aged father of two said in the first article I wrote, which ran on Aug. 27. "His show is trash TV."

When I interviewed Hedrick for the second article, which ran on Tuesday, he said Chapman had called him to chew him out.

"He ranted and raved for about 20 minutes," Hedrick said in the Tuesday article. "It was a tirade about how his show had several million viewers and how he had millions of dollars. I guess the puppy dog had his feelings hurt."

For those who aren't familiar with Dog, Chapman runs Da Kine Bail Bonds in Honolulu and once did time in Texas for first degree murder. His Web site describes him as a born-again Christian and modern-day Billy the Kid.

"Why did you say that kind of stuff about me?" he said, referring to Hedrick's comments. "I've been hunting since 1979. If he (Hedrick) thinks it's all BS, he's more than welcome to come on a ride along."

Chapman was on the phone for about five minutes and claimed Hedrick was part of a larger group out to get him.

"The bail bonds business is very competitive," Chapman said.

He also denied making the comment about "millions of dollars" (Hedrick stands by it), but hung up before I got a chance to ask him to elaborate. I tried calling his company in Hawaii and e-mailing him, but have not heard back.

Hedrick laughed off the calls.

"To show you what a crack investigator he is, he actually called Affordable Bail Bonds in Orange," he said. "They knew me there and gave him my number."

The private investigator didn't deny there was a group out to get Dog, but only because they feel he's giving them a bad rap. In Texas, the profession of bounty hunter officially is outlawed, and only peace officers or licensed private investigators can make arrests.

"Whenever there's a full moon and 'Dog's' been on TV, I get calls from yahoos," he said in the Aug. 27 story.

_________________
Steve Faircloth
A Way Out Bail Bonds
(220) 204-9733 Cell
NSIN# SF0105
LIC. #704058

He who laughs last, laughs best!

Hedrick must be uncontrollable right now.

Scott

_________________
R.E. "Scott" MacLean III

"Leaders are like Eagles, you never see them in a flock, but one at a time"

Chesapeake Group Investigations, Inc.
Chesapeake Bail Bonds
877-574-0500
301-392-1100 (fax)
301-392-1900 (Office)

Yeah, Steve is loving it .

_________________
Kathy Blackshear
Blackshear Investigations
Blackshear Bail Bonds
Sales Associate, Prepaid Legal Services, Inc.
Walsenburg, CO

Proud Member of the AB Reject Club

Scott wrote:

Darn, I thought it was " He who laughs last, ... thinks the slowest "

Yak.

_________________
Kathy Blackshear
Blackshear Investigations
Blackshear Bail Bonds
Sales Associate, Prepaid Legal Services, Inc.
Walsenburg, CO

Proud Member of the AB Reject Club

Steve has enjoyed this very much so

Yeah, I did enjoy my 20 min converstaion with the Puppy & Miss Piggy screaming in the background

_________________
Steve Hedrick
Hedrick & Associates INVESTIGATIVE GROUP
Nederland, TX
TX PI LIC #A-09665
(409) 284-1895
http://360.yahoo.com/ftachaser357
"For every DEFENDANT that fails to appear in Court, there is a VICTIM seeking Justice"

Steve you should have asked if you could record the conversation and then sold copies on the internet--you to could be rich