1. DOCUMENT ANALYSIS FORENSIC SCIENCE GRIFFIN

2. UNIT OBJECTIVES Students will understand: –An expert document analyst can individualize handwriting to a particular person –What types of evidence are submitted to the document analyst –Three types of forgery –How to characterize: Inks Papers Handwriting Students will be able to: –Characterize handwriting using the 12 points of analysis –Detect forgery –Conduct paper chromatography experiments

3. VOCABULARY Exemplar Diacritics Forgery (Blind, Simulated, Traced) Backhand writing Obliteration Indented writing Watermark Sizing

4. DOCUMENTS AS EVIDENCE Document analysis covers: –Verifying handwriting and signatures –Authenticating documents –Characterizing papers, pigments, and inks –Restoring erased and obliterated writing –Determining relative age of documents and inks

5. HOW ARE DOCUMENTS EVIDENCE? Ransom notes used in kidnapping cases Forged signatures on checks (or syllabi ) Suicide vs. Homicide Contested wills Medical malpractice Art forgeries Fraudulent documents (contracts and money)

6. EXAMINATION TOOLS Microscopes Infrared and ultraviolet (UV) light sources Imaging equipment Liquid chromatography Database comparison

7. QUESTIONED DOCUMENTS A questioned document is any object with handwriting or print whose source or authenticity is in doubt. In order to determine whether a signature or writing is authentic, document examiners look at 12 characteristics.

8. HANDWRITING ANALYSIS When analyzing documents, forensic document examiners deal with questions of authenticity and authorship. When looking at handwriting, examiners focus on three principles: –Given a sufficient amount of handwriting, no two skilled writers exhibit identical handwriting features –Every person has a range of natural variation to his or her writing –No writer can exceed his or her writing skill level

9. 12 CHARACTERISTICS 1.Line quality 2.Spacing of words and letters 3.Ratio of relative height, width, and size of the letters 4.Pen lifts and separations 5.Connecting strokes 6.Beginning and ending strokes 7.Unusual letter formation 8.Shading or pen pressure 9.Slant 10.Baseline habits 11.Flourishes or embellishments 12.Placement of diacritics *Characteristics are also separated into class and individualized groups

10. FORGERY Forgery: An item prepared with the intent to deceive or defraud. This includes autographs, books, paintings, stamps, antiques, etc. The most common type of forgery is a signature. There are three types of forgery: –Blind forgery –Simulated forgery –Traced forgery –Made by carefully drawing the signature –Made by tracing a genuine signature onto another surface –Made using ones own handwriting

13. Line quality Spacing (excessive) Four signatures from same person demonstrating variation Low-skilled writer High-skilled writer Purposely distorted

14. PAPER Paper can be made from many different materials such as: papyrus parchment, and eco-friendly hemp. Today’s paper is most commonly made from wood pulp.

15. PAPER (CONT) Some paper will be treated with chemicals: –Sulfate – shopping bags –Sodium sulfite – stationary Some paper will have additives, such as cotton fibers. Watermarks can tell when a piece of paper was manufactured and where it was sold.

16. PAPER ANALYSIS Forensic Analysts will look for: –Raw materials –Color –Density –Watermarks –Dyes or bleaching –Fluorescence under UV (ultraviolet) light –Thickness as determined by a micrometer

17. CASE STUDIES Hitler Diaries Ossian Manuscript Howard Hughes Forgery Lord Byron Forgeries Texas Declaration of Independence Vinland Map Thomas Chatterton George Psalmanasar John Payne Collier Alexander Howland Smith Thomas James Wise Lindbergh Kidnapping Weinberger Kidnapping Anthrax letters Washington Sniper Letters JonBenet Ramsey Letter