Questioned Document and Handwriting Examination

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Questioned Document and Handwriting Examination

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What is a Questioned Document?

• .

• Examples of questioned documents include
  letters, checks, licenses, contracts, wills,
  passports, art, lottery tickets etc.
• Elements of questioned documents include the
  handwriting, ink and paper.

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The Comparison

• A questioned document will be compared to a known
  exemplar or sample (if available). The most
  common type of comparison involves handwriting
  analysis.
• The document examiner may also determine what
  happened to a document, when it was produced and
  if any markings have been obliterated or erased.

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The Correct Expert

• .Unfortunately, no federal licensing exists for a
  document examiner. However, certification is
  offered through the American Board of Forensic
  Document Examiners (ABFDE). A certified document
  examiner is an acceptable witness in court.
• However, a graphologist attempts to predict
  character traits from handwriting examination.
  This type of expert is not acceptable as an
  expert witness.

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Handwriting Analysis

• According to Sheila Lowe in her book, Handwriting
  of the Famous and Infamous, former President
  Bushs handwriting is fast and highly simplified
  in fairly well-organized writing field.
• Is this a forensic document examiner or a
  graphologist??

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Handwriting

• Handwriting analysis involves two phases
• 1. A determination of the hardware used to make
  the text. Ink, paper, pencils, typewriters,
  photocopiers, printers and fax machines are types
  of hardware.
• 2. Visual examination of the handwriting
  characteristics on the document.

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The Hardware-Ink

• Ink is a liquid that is composed of pigments,
  dyes and other materials. An examiner will
  analyze the ink of the known and questioned
  document to determine if the two documents were
  made by the same pen. The analysis of ink
  involves chromatography. This process physically
  separates the components of the ink.
• Types of chromatography include
• Gas Chromatography
• HPLC--high-performance liquid chromatography
• TLC--thin-layer chromatography
• Paper Chromatography

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Paper Chromatographyof Ink

• Two samples of black ink from two different
  manufacturers are separated into their unique
  components using paper chromatography.

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Retention Factor (Rf)

• This is a number that represents how far a
  compound travels in a particular solvent.
• It is determined by measuring the distance the
  solute traveled and dividing it by the distance
  the solvent traveled.

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Another Type of Chromatography

• Gas chromatography separates mixtures on the
  basis of their distribution between a stationary
  liquid phase and a moving gas phase. The written
  record of the results is called a chromatogram.
• A typical one will show a series of peaks, with
  each representing one component of the mixture.

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United States International Ink Library

• The Secret Service and the Internal Revenue
  Service partnered to create and maintain this
  database.
• Over 8,500 inks dating back to the 1920s are
  included in the collection.
• Each year new pen and ink formulas are added to
  the database.

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The Hardware - Paper

• Most paper is made from wood pulp. Some types of
  paper are treated with chemicals or include
  cotton fibers.
• For example, newspaper contains only wood pulp,
  but shopping bags are treated with sulfate for
  extra strength.

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The Hardware - Paper

• The paper used for both the questioned document
  as well as the exemplar will be evaluated using
• Weight assigned based on the weight of a ream
• Thickness measured to 1/1000th of an inch
• Color fillers are added for certain colors
• Water marks a translucent design viewed by
  holding the paper to the light
• Age determined by Carbon-14 dating

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The Hardware - Pencils

• Most pencils are wooden cylinders with a graphite
  core. The core is measured by the Hardness Scale.
• The Hardness Scale is a traditional measure of
  the hardness of the "leads" (actually made of
  graphite) in pencils. The hardness scale has a
  range from 9B (the softest) to 9H (the hardest).

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The Hardness Scale

• H stands for hard, B for black and F for fine.
• The typical 2 pencil used in school is a HB
  pencil.

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The Hardware - Typewriter

• Although typewriters are not as widely used
  today, there are still typescripts that need to
  be analyzed.
• An examiner will need to determine
• 1. The make and model of the typewriter.
• 2. Any unique feature that will link the
  questioned document to a particular typewriter.

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The Hardware Photocopiers, Printers and Fax
Machines

• The onset of digital technology created many new
  machines capable of creating documents.
• Document examiners are now asked to examine
  copied documents from photocopiers, printers and
  fax machines.
• Examiners will be asked to determine
• 1. The make and model of these machines.
• 2. Any markings or smudges on the copied document
  that are unique to the machine.

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The Visual Examination

• In conjunction with hardware examination, a
  visual examination is performed.
• This visual examination will focus on specific
  handwriting characteristics.

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Obtaining a Handwriting Sample

• Many times a suspect with be asked to provide a
  handwriting sample.
• There is a protocol for obtaining this sample

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Handwriting Sample Protocol

• The subject should not be shown the questioned
  document.
• The subject is not told how to spell words or use
  punctuation.
• The subject should use materials similar to those
  of the document.
• The dictated text should match some parts of the
  document.
• The subject should be asked to sign the text.
• A witness should be present.

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Handwriting Characteristics Used in A Comparison

• Line Quality
• Lettering Slant
• Word and Letter Spacing
• Unusual Letter Formation
• Letter Comparison
• Diacritic Placement
• Baseline Habits
• Pen Lifts
• Body Placement
• Pen Pressure

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Handwriting Identification

• ACE is used to determine if the handwriting of
  the known and questioned documents are a match.
• Analysis of both the known and questioned writing
  to determine its unique characteristics.
• Comparison of the questioned writing with the
  known writing.
• Evaluation of the evidence, including the
  similarities and dissimilarities between the
  questioned and known writing.

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Forensics Linguistics

• Occasionally a linguist will be asked to examine
  a document. These experts look at the linguistic
  content (the way something is written) of a
  questioned document.
• The language that is used can help to establish
  the writers age, gender, ethnicity, level of
  education, professional training, and ideology.

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Forensics Linguists (cont)

• For example, a kidnapper and murderer sent text
  messages from the victims cellular telephone to
  the family so the family would think she was
  still alive and texting them.
• A linguist compared the voice of three months
  of text messages. The most recent texts (from the
  kidnapper) used the number 2 instead of to, aint
  instead of Im not and phone instead of fone.
• This comparison indicated that the victim did not
  send the most recent messages and was in fact
  dead.

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Which Category of Evidence

• 1. Class characteristics--the type of ink may
  have similar characteristics as the exemplar.
  Handwriting may be used to include or exclude a
  suspect.
• 2. Individual characteristics-with document
  analysis, it is difficult to determine individual
  characteristics except with typewriter or printer
  specific marks.

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After the Examinations are Complete

• Once the examination of the questioned document
  is complete, the investigator must decide if a
  crime has been committed.
• Possible crimes include
• Fraud
• Forgery
• Counterfeiting
• Identity Theft

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Fraud, Forgery, Counterfeiting and Identity Theft

• Fraud is an intentional deception for personal
  gain or for harm to another.
• Forgery is the process of creating, adapting or
  imitating objects or documents with an intent to
  deceive.
• Therefore, forgery is a type of fraud.
• The forging of money is counterfeiting.
• The forging of a person is identity theft.

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The Three Types of Forgery

• 1. The most common and easiest to detect is a
  blind forgery. A blind forgery occurs when the
  forger uses his/her own handwriting and does not
  try to copy the original.
• 2 When the forger has a copy of the original
  signature and tries to copy that original, it is
  a simulated forgery.
• 3. A traced forgery occurs when the forger places
  a document over the original signature and traces
  the signature on the new document.

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Comparison of Two Checks
The forger changed the six to sixty.
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Forged Check
Example of a blind forgery..
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Other Clues from the Visual Examination

• In addition to the handwriting analysis, other
  inconsistencies may be determined from the visual
  examination.
• Obliterations indicate that the document has been
  changed. An examiner must determine if the change
  is part of the original document.
• An obliteration may be physical or chemical. An
  example of a physical obliteration is erasing
  with an eraser.
• A strong oxidizing agent can make ink colorless.
  This type of chemical obliteration is visible
  under UV lighting.

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Other Clues from the Visual Examination

• Indented impressions are often left on the paper
  that was underneath the original document. These
  indentions are due to the pressure of the writing
  utensil. Oblique lighting will enhance these
  indentations.

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A CRAZY CRIMINALS SIGNATURE

• According to Point of View, a magazine published
  by the Alameda county District Attorneys office,
  a guy walked into an Oakland bank and handed the
  teller a note reading, this is a stikkup. Hand
  over all yer money fast.
• Guessing from this that the guy was no rocket
  scientist, the teller replied, Ill hand over
  the cash as long as you sign for it. Its a bank
  policy that all robbers have to sign for their
  money.
• The guy thought this over, then said Uh, I guess
  thats OK. He signed his full name and address.
  Thats where the cops found him a few hours later.

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Counterfeiting

• Forging money is known as counterfeiting. This is
  one of the oldest crimes.
• During the Civil War, when all banks issued their
  own currency, approximately one-third of money
  was counterfeit. This was a threat to the U.S.
  economy.
• So in 1863, the United States adopted a national
  currency.

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Counterfeiting (cont)

• The adoption of the national currency really did
  not curtail the amount of counterfeiting.
• In 1865, the Secret Service was created to
  investigate and stop counterfeiting.
• Although counterfeiting is not as pervasive as it
  once was, it is still a common crime. The latest
  technology has made it much easier to copy and
  counterfeit money. In 1996, the U.S. government
  began to add new features to money.

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Counterfeiting (cont)

• Some of these features include
• A watermark
• Color shifting ink
• Off-center portrait
• Randomly disbursed red and blue fibers in the
  paper

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Which 10.00 is counterfeit?