Introduction to Forensic Questioned Document. This further will equip the reader's knowledge of the background on forensics, particularly on examination of disputed documents.

1. CARLO BRIAN ALESNA
REYNSON JOHN AGUILO
RIZA BINOY
MARBIE BRAGA
ERIKA GAROVILLO
ANDY JOHN VILLAMER

2. What is a Document?
It is any material, which contains marks, signs, or symbols, which is visible, partially visible or
invisible that may presently or ultimately convey a meaning or message to someone.
A document becomes questioned document when it is being questioned as to its originality,
authenticity, authorship, source and genuineness and it is placed under scrutiny to determine
whether or not it is disputed.
A document may be broadly defined as anything that bears marks, signs, or symbols which have
meaning or conveys a message to someone.

3. What is a Questioned Document?
•It is any document about which some issue has been raised or place under scrutiny. It is a document that has
been questioned in whole or in part with respect to its authenticity or identity or origin, or its relation among its
parts and to other things.
•A questioned document is one in which a document in its entirety, or in part, is subject to question as to
authenticity and/or origin.
•Any signature, handwriting, typewriting, or other marks whose source or authenticity is in dispute or is doubtful.
•Can also include writings found on walls, windows, doors, mirrors, glass, etc
•Examiner gains knowledge from training and years of experience
•Like fingerprints there is no set criterion for points of match.

4. What is a Questioned Document Examination?
It is a profession that started since 1870, and frequently is found in cases of forgery, counterfeiting, mail fraud, kidnapping, con
games, embezzlement, gambling, organized crime, white collar crime, art crime, theft, robbery, arson, burglary, homicide, ser ial
murder, psychological profiling, and deviant sex crime.
Questioned document examination involves the analysis and comparison of questioned documents with known material in order
to identify, whenever possible, the author or origin of the questioned document.
Involves the examination of handwriting, ink, paper, etc., to ascertain source or authenticity. Examples include letters, checks,
licenses, contracts, wills, passports.
Investigations include verification; authentication; characterizing papers, pigments, and inks.
The application of allied sciences and analytical techniques to questions concerning documents is termed forensic document
examination.The examination of questioned documents consists of the analysis and comparison of questioned handwriting, hand
printing, typewriting, commercial printing, photocopies, papers, inks, and other documentary evidence with known material in
order to establish the authenticity of the contested material as well as the detection of alterations.
Is a form of forensic science that includes the analysis of handwriting as well as the detection of forged documents such as
passports.

5. Scope of Questioned Document Examination
• Identification of a document as a forgery
• Identification of handwriting and signatures
• Identification of typewriters, check writers, and photocopies

6. • Detection of alterations, additions, deletions, or substitutions
• Deciphering alterations and erasures
• Identification and deciphering of indented writing
• Comparisons of inks and identification of type of writing instrument

7. Classes of Questioned Documents
• Documents with questioned signatures;
• Documents containing alleged fraudulent alterations;
• Holograph documents;
• Documents questioned as to their age or date;

8. • Documents questioned as to the material used in their production;
• Documents involving typewriting and are investigated or examined for purposes of determining their source
and date, whether or not it contains fraudulent alterations or substituted pages;
• Document’s which may identify a person through handwriting;
• Genuine documents erroneously and fraudulently attacked or disputed;

9. Classes of Disputed Signatures
• Simple or Spurious
• Copied or simulated forgery
• Traced forgery;

10. • Forged signature of fictitious persons;
• Genuine signature that the writer is honestly unwilling to accept as genuine;

11. • Genuine signature obtained by trickery;
• Genuine signature deliberately written illegibly or in an unusual manner to avoid identification.

12. Related Fields
1.Historical dating—the verification of age and value of a document or object
2.Fraud investigation—focuses on the money trail and criminal intent
3.Paper and ink specialists—date, type, source, and/or catalog various types of paper,
watermarks, ink, printing/copy/fax machines, computer cartridges
4.Forgery specialists—analyze altered, obliterated, changed, or doctored documents
and photos
5.Typewriting analysts—determine origin, make, and model
6.Computer crime investigators—investigate cybercrime

13. Types of Examinations
•Handwriting Comparisons
•Ink Examinations

14. •Indented Writing
•Alterations

15. •Paper Analysis
•Photocopy Analysis

16. •Typewriting
•And other related section

17. Most Common Questioned Documents
•Letters
•Checks
•Drivers Licenses

18. •Contracts
•Wills
•Voter registration

19. •Passports
•Petitions
•Threatening letters

20. •Suicide notes
•Lottery tickets

21. Cases Involving Questioned Documents
•Forgery
•Counterfeiting
•Mail fraud
•Kidnapping
•Con games
•Embezzlement
•Gambling
•Organized crime
•White collar crime
•Art crimes
•Theft
•Robbery
•Arson
•Burglary
•Homicide
•Serial murder
•Psychological profiling
•Deviant sex crimes

22. HISTORICAL AND FAMOUS CASES IN Questioned Documents
Questions about the legitimacy of documents are probably as old as documents themselves. Here are
some interesting cases in questioned document history:
In 1795 a Mr. Ireland brought forward what he claimed to be a new version of "Kynge Leare" which was
allegedly written by William Shakespeare himself. In 1796, Edward Malone published a refutation of this
document. Mr. Malone had discovered that the questioned manuscript contained pages with twenty
different watermarks. He reasoned that an author of Shakespeare's caliber who was also famous and
affluent at the time Lear was written, would have gone to a paper-maker and secured as much paper of
one type as was needed for his work. But someone who wanted to forge an Elizabethan play 200 years
later would ferret out such scraps of old paper as he could - from the flyleaves and blank pages of old
manuscripts. Indeed, in 1805 the forger wrote his confession and admitted that he had done exactly that.
He had paid a bookseller to let him cut out blank pages from the older volumes in his shop.
Many questioned document cases are proven on evidence other than handwriting examination. For
example, in 1928 there was a famous case known as the Duke "Lost Heirs Case" which was tried in
Somerville, NJ. A family Bible was introduced inscribed with the birth dates of children of the family.The
mother claimed that she wrote the dates in the Bible shortly after the birth of the children in 1887 and
1889. However, careful examination of the Bible itself showed that it was copyrighted in 1890, invalidating
the timing claimed by the mother.
A document examiner must be relentlessly thorough in considering all aspects of a document. In the
1920's the Oliver Will case was tried in White Plains, NewYork. The question revolved around the date on
which the will was written. A legal form which had the date and name and address of its printer at the top
was used for the will, but a piece of the document which showed the date had been torn away. There were
two possibilities for the date of the form - January 8, 1924, or October 8, 1924.The date of the alleged will
was September 20, 1924, so the only form that could have been used was the one printed earlier in the
year. Upon close examination it was found that in tearing away the dated portion of the form, the tail of
the comma in the address was still visible, and the position on the paper of that comma tail proved that
the form could not have been the January 8th form.The questioned will was therefore written on a form
that did not exist on the date it was allegedly prepared.

23. Another in early in 1972 a Federal Grand Jury heard the testimony of a Questioned
Document Examiner from the Crime Laboratory of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service
regarding questioned documents allegedly written by Howard R. Hughes. In these
documents permission was granted for a biography of Mr. Hughes to be written by
Clifford Irving. Mr. Irving had used these questioned documents to convince the editors of
McGraw-Hill Book Co. and Life Magazine that he had a deal with Mr. Hughes - an
allegation hotly contested by Howard Hughes when he learned of it.
The testimony of the experts from the Postal Inspection Service was that the questioned
documents were not written by Mr. Hughes. Often in forgery cases it is possible to
conclude that the alleged author of a document did not do the writing, but it is more
difficult to conclude that a particular person did do it. This is because the writing habits of
the forger will often be buried in the attempt to simulate the pictoral look and style of the
"target" writing. However, in this case, there was a large amount of writing in question.
Mr. Irving had even had "Mr. Hughes" write a letter to the editors of Mc-Graw Hill to
validate his agreement with Mr. Irving.The volume of questioned writing was enough that
Mr. Irving was not able to keep up his "disguise" and his own individual writing
characteristics showed through the veneer of the simulated "Hughes" writing.

24. An Expert’s Testimony as a Questioned Document Examiner
My own first brush with famous documents came with a case in 1992. I was asked to verify the authenticity
of an alleged original copy of The Declaration of Independence. An elderly Southern gentleman had
purchased an old trunk and found this document with its contents. He was quite insistent that I travel to his
home to see the document, and I prepared myself to do so. He was not willing to send me a photocopy, and
I was not sure whether the answer to the problem would come from handwriting evidence, paper or ink
analysis, or historical information, so I gathered information on all of the above. From the history
department at a local University I learned about the various stages of preparation of the famous document.
There were "broadsides" printed and posted before the actual document was signed, and various copies
prepared on different dates were signed in stages by the Representatives.There were slight changes in
wording in some editions of the document. There were also commemorative editions of the Declaration
printed in various formats in the years just after the Revolution. Actually, there are still such editions
printed today. I hoped that by understanding the history of the actual document, I could look at the
questioned document and make some preliminary decisions about it.
I am neither an ink nor paper chemist, and I did some networking to locate such experts who would be
willing to work with me if my preliminary examination indicated that the document had a chance of being
authentic. I also spoke with archivists who helped me secure additional comparison signatures of the
people whose names I expected to see signed on the document. When the time for the trip came, I felt as
prepared as possible to do at least a preliminary investigation and then to route the document to additional
experts for non-destructive testing.
I reached my destination via plane and rental car, checked into a hotel, and arranged to meet with my
client. This document had become a focal point of the lives of this man and his family. If it were genuine it
would have great value, and there was a question of pride involved as well. Unfortunately, it did not take
long for me to shatter their fondest hopes. A careful look through the microscope revealed that the
printing process used on the document was not available in the late 1700's. The signatures were not done
individually in ink as the owner of the document had insisted they were. My final conclusion, which was
later borne out by a paper expert, was that at best the document was one of many sets printed
commemoratively in 1876 at the Centennial celebration of the Revolution. This would set its value at
approximately $100.00 according to a consultant at a famous auction house. My client was very
disappointed, but glad to have the matter resolved. I was also disappointed, but not surprised. I was glad to
have had the impetus to learn more about American history and to feel close to it for a brief time.

25. On Labor Day weekend, 2004, I was asked by a producer at the CBS Television program 60 Minutes, to examine
some sensitive documents for possible use on an upcoming program. After reaching agreement on the fee, time-
frame, and parameters, I learned that the documents involved the National Guard records of President George
Bush, who was running for re-election at that time.
The documents arrived on Sunday, via courier. They were copied and faxed documents, and the reproduction
quality was poor. I found several potential problems with the questioned signatures of Jerry Killian, and with the
printed characters and formatting in terms of their alleged dates in the early 1970's. I prepared an illustrated
comparison of the known and questioned handwriting and emailed it to the producer. I researched the machine
printed characteristics I had noted to learn more about their earliest date of production. Sunday afternoon I
discussed my observations with the 60 Minutes producer, and explained that the questions I had could not be
answered from the poor quality reproductions available, and that without "positive" resolution of those questions
it would not be possible to support the documents. I also suggested a typwriter expert who could be consulted for
more information on the issue of typewriter chronology.The producer indicated that more documents would be
available in the next 24 hours, and that they would be sent to me.
The program was scheduled to air on Wednesday, September 8. Having received no additional documents and no
further communication from CBS by the evening of the 7th, I phoned the producer and restated my concerns about
the documents. I learned that the episode was going forward, and I expressed the opinion that if the documents
were presented as authentic, that all of the questions I was raising were going to be raised by other document
examiners immediately after the program.This is exactly what happened. What I did not forsee was all of the
commentary that would come from "the blogosphere."
For 10 days after the broadcast, 60 Minutes continued to defend the documents, and to imply that they had
thoroughly vetted the documents with various document examiners. Eventually I was directly asked by a reporter
at ABC Television whether I had seen the documents. I explained my participation to the reporter, which led to
further explaining it on national television. When the dust settled, and an independent investigation was ordered, I
explained it yet again to the investigators.
From a document examiner's point of view, the lessons to be learned from this experience are:
1. Poor quality documents lack the detail necessary to reach a reliable opinion.
2. The burden of proof is usually on the proponent of a document. A journalist relying
on a document in an investigative report should have the answers to any reasonable
questions about the handwriting/machine printing of that document.

26. THE END