Forensic Document Examination

Scope and Background

  • Forensic Document Examination (FDE) practitioner with extensive credentials and experience

    • 42 years of experience

    • Served on the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences

    • Contracted with FDLE (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) twice

    • Contracted with the State of Florida for criminal work

    • Contracted with the Secretary of State of Florida

    • Testified in 4 death-penalty cases

    • Recently completed a case involving a sum approaching ¾ of a billion dollars

  • Purpose: overview and professional context of FDE as a discipline

Scope of Forensic Document Examination

  • Covers the following areas:

    • Signature and handwriting examinations

    • Alterations to documents

    • Indented writings

    • Non-destructive ink and paper analyses

    • Office machine classification and identification

    • Counterfeit examinations

    • Charred document examination and restoration

    • Edge matching

  • Qualifications of a Forensic Document Examiner

    • Complete minimum 24 months of full-time training

    • Certification by testing (technical testing) by the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners (ABFDE)

    • Affiliation with reputable professional organizations:

    • American Society of Questioned Document Examiners (ASQDE)

    • American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS)

    • Canadian Society of Forensic Science (CSFS)

    • Southeastern Association of Forensic Document Examiners (SEAFDE)

    • College degree in science, criminal justice, or related field

    • Active involvement in research

    • No history of color or form blindness

Training and Professional Standards

  • Training Shortcuts and their consequences (for profession and users)

    • Online courses

    • Self-training

    • Unqualified training officers

    • Graphologists

    • Abbreviated training time

    • Lack of science background

    • Meaningless “certification”

    • Organizations with lax or weak membership requirements

    • Overall risk: reduced reliability and credibility in examinations

What is an individual handwriting characteristic?

  • Handwriting develops from learning to write in early school years (1st grade printing; 3rd grade cursive; possibly later)

  • Handwriting systems historically include: Zaner-Bloser, Palmer, D’Nealian

  • Paragraph structure, margins, punctuation, etc. are taught; deviations from the taught systems become individual handwriting characteristics

  • Individuality arises from deviations within normal writing systems

Types of Individual Characteristics (overview)

  • Spacing

  • Letter Height Ratio

  • Baseline Habits

  • Letter Connections

  • Initial & Terminal Strokes

  • Pen Pressure

  • Letter Design

  • Slant

  • These characteristics are used to compare and contrast handwriting samples

Goal of looking at Types of Individual Characteristics

  • Look at handwriting with a different perspective to identify individuality and uniqueness

Key developing figures in Characteristics (visuals)

  • Spacing, Letter Height Ratio, Baseline Habits, Letter Connections, Initial & Terminal Strokes, Pen Pressure, Letter Design, Slant are central to analysis

Details: Spacing and Height Ratios (examples from slides)

  • Spacing and spacing patterns used to distinguish writers

  • Letter Height Ratio: comparison of ascenders/descenders to body height (illustrative example: Rudolph vs. Fudolph)

  • Baseline Habits: consistency of baseline alignment and deviation patterns

  • Letter Connections: how letters connect within a word (evidence of unique motor patterns)

Further characteristics (illustrative slides)

  • Letter Connections: shuttle-like connections and other distinctive linkages

  • Pen Pressure: depth and furrows; how pressure changes create distinctive marks on paper

  • Initial & Terminal Strokes: distinctive beginnings and endings of strokes

  • Slant: angle of writing; changes may indicate disguise or adaptation

Forgery: Definitions and Forms

  • Forgery Definition: writing of another’s name with or without consent and with intent to defraud

  • Four Forms of Forgery:

    • Simple Forgery: signing another’s name in one’s own natural writing

    • Simulated Forgery: freehand copy of a signature using a model or mental template

    • Traced Forgery: tracing a signature onto another document or area

    • Cut and Paste Forgery: transferring a signature or image from one document to another using copy/scan techniques

Forgery Exercise (illustrative cases)

  • Model/signature examples used to demonstrate different forgery forms

  • Simulated Forgery: signatures created with speed differences and overlapping features

  • Traced Forgery: overlays showing similarities; erasures or vestiges may be present on known samples

Characteristics of Forgery Forms

  • Simple Forgery

    • No similarity between the forged signature and genuine writing

    • Written at normal writing speed

    • Forms include: Simple Forgery, Simulated Forgery, Traced Forgery, Simulated Forgery with speed, Traced Forgery with speed

  • Simulated Forgery

    • A freehand copy based on a model (physical or mental)

    • Often exhibits differences in letter design, spacing, and line quality

  • Traced Forgery

    • Extensive similarity to the model; few distinguishing characteristics

    • Evidence of slowed execution; potential erasures

  • Cut and Paste Forgery

    • Involves placement of writing from one document onto another using memory or digital copying tools

    • Look for signs of borders, mismatches in margins, or inconsistent line spacing

Evidence and analysis in forgery cases

  • Forgery Exercise visuals show how overlays and erasures can mislead

  • In some cases, known samples used were actually erasures/overlays from legitimate documents; tracings added to mislead

  • Key concept: forensic examiners must identify the possibility of manipulated or substituted samples

Diagnosing Simulated Forgery vs Traced Forgery

  • Simulated Forgery: overall similar appearance with many specific characteristic differences; slower execution can sometimes be observed

  • Traced Forgery: extensive similarity to model; fewer distinguishing features; evidence of tracing, erasures, or modifications

  • Clues include pen lifts, line quality, slowness, and non-uniformities in appearance

Clues to Forgery: Pen Lifts and Non-Uniformity

  • Pen Lifts: indicators of non-fluid execution can suggest forgery or disguise

  • Poor Line Quality: irregular lines indicating hesitancy or deliberate altering of strokes

  • Blunt Initial and Terminal Strokes: lack of smoothness at the start/end of a signature

Disguise in Forgery

  • Disguise Complications: deliberate attempts to delete identifying characteristics from handwriting

  • Forms of Disguise:

    • Change of Slant

    • Reversion to Early Schoolbook Form

    • Change of Size

    • Change of Speed

    • Use of Printing

    • Use of Awkward Hand

    • Any combination of above

Keys to Recognizing Disguise

  • Non-Uniformity in Appearance across samples (size, slant, spacing, speed, letter design, baseline)

  • Line Quality: smooth vs. jagged transitions

  • Initial & Terminal Strokes: changes or inconsistencies

  • Heavy Pen Pressure and feel of back of document exposure

  • Awkward Handwriting markers

Forgery Examination: Outside Influences and Biases

  • Complications – Outside Influences:

    • Old Age

    • Injury

    • Mental Illness

    • Vision Problems

    • Medications, Drugs & Alcohol

    • Awkward Writing Position

  • Complication – Bias:

    • Information Bias: preconceived notions (e.g., “we know he’s guilty” or “we have two witnesses”)

    • Intentional Bias: expert-for-hire motive to align conclusions with the party paying

    • Unintentional Bias: subconscious influences

    • Physiological Bias: fatigue, distress, overwork

  • Bias is not necessarily equivalent to error, but it can influence objectivity

Case Examples and Exhibits

  • Jean Kennedy Pontius (example: questioned vs known signature variants across documents)

  • John Malone and other sample signatures with overlapping/erased elements

  • Illustrative documents showing the complexity of determining genuineness versus forgery

  • Distinguishing genuine signatures from altered or simulated samples requires careful comparison of model and known samples

Infrared Examinations of Altered Documents

  • Infrared and infrared luminescence can detect differences in ink chemistry without harming the document

  • Used to compare unknown vs known samples for alterations or substitutions

  • Infrared examinations serve as a non-destructive method to reveal ink composition differences

Alterations to Documents: Types and Detection

  • Types of Alterations:

    • Erasure: physical or chemical elimination of entries or portions thereof

    • Additions: non-contemporaneous entries altering the meaning of a document

    • Obliterations: covering entries from one side or another; ESDA can reveal indented writing underneath

    • Cut and Paste: transfer of writing from one document to another using copiers or computers; borders or margins may reveal manipulation

    • Pagination: insertion of an entire page into a multi-page document

  • Adding and locating additions

    • Look for entries of different size, different ink, crammed words, pen pressure differences, and margin alignment differences

  • Indented Writings and ESDA (Indented Writing)

    • Embossment or indentations on subsequent pages after writing

    • ESDA (Electrostatic Detection Apparatus) used to reveal indented writings not visible to the naked eye

    • Forensic tests show appearances of indentations (e.g., letters from one sheet appear on the next page)

Indents, Staples, and Edge Matching

  • Staples often indicate document was assembled or altered; may reveal tampering when examined under specific light or illumination

  • Edge Matching:

    • Determines whether two distinct objects were once joined or were part of a single object

    • Used to verify whether pages or fragments originated from the same document or source

Counterfeiting and Counterfeit Checks (Examples)

  • Counterfeit checks and suspicious bank instruments commonly used in fraud

  • Example: counterfeit check with altered bank information; genuine checks overlaid with altered data; irregularities in font, spacing, and ink

  • Edge matching, ink comparison, and paper analysis help detect counterfeit documents

Edge Matching and Counterfeit Examination Exemplar

  • Edge matching helps identify whether two pieces were originally parts of the same document

  • Counterfeit documents may show inconsistencies in margins, line spacing, and alignment when pieces are compared

General Handwriting Specimens and Forensic Practice

  • Specimen forms and witness sampling processes used in practice

  • Notable features observed in specimen collections: name spellings, addresses, and signature variants across samples

  • Example forms illustrate how handwriting samples are organized for comparison and how overlays/erasure might mislead

Population Sampling in Handwriting Research (Journal Article, 2016)

  • Aim: measure the frequency occurrence of handwriting and handprinting characteristics

  • Factors influencing handwriting studies (Intrinsic and extrinsic):

    • Age

    • Sex

    • Race

    • Location of Education

    • Handedness

    • Level of Education

  • Methodology: testing pairs of features using the product rule

    • Step 1: Total writers using both tested features ÷ population count

    • Step 2: Multiply the individual frequency occurrences

    • Step 3: Compare results; if correlation coefficient r > 0.2, features are considered dependent

  • Results (independence of feature pairs):

    • Cursive feature pairs independence: 97.39\%

    • Hand printing feature pairs independence: 98.55\%

    • Inter-character pairs independence: 72.92\%

  • Frequency Occurrence Proportions and validity

    • 95% confidence limits used in evaluating results

  • Implications for forensic practice:

    • Higher independence between most feature pairs supports the product rule for probabilistic assessment

    • Population sampling establishes references for likelihood-based evaluations

  • Conclusions and rationale for further studies:

    • Need for a central handwriting database

    • Establishment of sampling protocols for handwriting studies

    • Product Rule application depends on independence; correlation > 0.2 indicates dependence

  • How to become a Forensic Document Examiner (professional development pathway)

    • Internship or near-mandatory apprenticeship

    • Attending organization meetings

    • Conducting good research and presenting papers

    • Making professional contacts and possibly relocating for opportunities

    • Reading basic texts in the field; potentially taking other lab positions first

Becoming a Forensic Scientist: Professional standards and practice

  • Certification through a technical testing organization

  • Membership and involvement in professional organizations

  • Understanding limitations of Daubert issues and other legal considerations

  • Education of attorneys and judges about forensic handwriting science (especially those who may be unfamiliar with the field)

  • Challenge pretenders and questionable organizations

  • Establishment and strengthening of published standards

  • Giving back to the profession and staying informed about evolving research and standards

Case Illustrations: Handwriting analysis and expert testimony

  • Common challenges in court: distinguishing genuine variations from forger manipulation

  • Importance of transparent methodology and disclosure of limitations

  • The need to explain probabilistic reasoning clearly to judges and juries

Edge and Texture: Summary of key technical concepts

  • Edge Matching: determining whether documents or fragments were originally joined

  • Indented Writing: detecting writing on subsequent pages via ESDA

  • Infrared analysis: detecting ink composition differences without damaging documents

  • Variations due to aging, ink chemistry, and paper properties, which can complicate interpretation

Practical Implications and Ethical Considerations

  • Avoiding overreliance on a single feature; use a holistic approach across multiple characteristics

  • Recognizing potential biases and ensuring objectivity

  • The importance of proper chain of custody and sample integrity

  • Communicating uncertainty appropriately to law enforcement, attorneys, and juries

Key Takeaways for Exam Preparation

  • Know the scope of practice and the core areas of Forensic Document Examination

  • Be able to describe the four forms of forgery and the distinguishing features of Simple, Simulated, Traced, and Cut-and-Paste forgeries

  • Understand the concept of disguises and how they affect handwriting features (slant, size, speed, line quality, etc.)

  • Be prepared to discuss the signs of outside influences and bias in examinations, with examples

  • Be able to explain ESDA and infrared techniques and their roles in detecting indented writings and ink differences

  • Recognize the importance of population studies and the product rule in evaluating handwriting evidence

  • Appreciate the professional pathway to becoming a certified FDE and the ethical considerations involved

Mathematical and methodological notes (LaTeX-ready for exam use)

  • Product Rule (independence assumption):

    • For two independent features A and B, the joint probability is approximately the product of the individual probabilities:
      P(A \cap B) \approx P(A) \cdot P(B)

  • Dependence when r > 0.2: a correlation coefficient greater than 0.2 indicates dependence between features
    r > 0.2 \Rightarrow \text{features are dependent}

  • Population sampling results (example values from the study):
    97.39\%\quad\text{independence for cursive feature pairs}
    98.55\%\quad\text{independence for hand printing pairs}
    72.92\%\quad\text{independence for inter-character pairs}

  • Sampling methodology summary:

    • Step 1: compute joint frequency: P(A\cap B) = \frac{\text{Number of writers using both A and B}}{N}

    • Step 2: compute product of marginals: P(A) \cdot P(B)

    • Step 3: compare to assess independence and apply product rule accordingly

  • Important study conclusions:

    • Education level, age, and location of education significantly influence handwriting characteristics

    • Handedness was a non-factor in the cited results

    • A central handwriting database and standardized sampling protocols are recommended for future research

Notes on structure and sources used in this deck

  • The material covers foundational procedures for FDE, including training, qualifications, and professional standards

  • It includes practical exercises (forgery exercises with model and known signatures) to illustrate how forgeries are detected and analyzed

  • It discusses the role of technology (ESDA, infrared imaging) in uncovering hidden alterations and indentations

  • It addresses ethical considerations, sources of bias, and the necessity for objective methodology

  • It concludes with career guidance for becoming a forensic document examiner and the importance of ongoing professional development

Appendix: Quick reference terms

  • ABFDE: American Board of Forensic Document Examiners

  • ESDA: Electrostatic Detection Apparatus (for indented writings)

  • ASQDE: American Society of Questioned Document Examiners

  • Slant: the angle of handwriting

  • Baseline: the imaginary line on which handwriting sits

  • Edge Matching: determining if two pieces were originally connected

  • Indented Writing: writings impressed on subsequent sheets

  • Pagination: inserting entire pages into a document

  • Product Rule: combining probabilities of independent features to assess overall likelihood

End-of-notes summary

  • This set provides a thorough, exam-ready synthesis of the material on forensic document examination, including theory, practical techniques, example cases, and professional context.