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You may have heard the phrase in movies or TV, but you may not know the extent to which a forensic document examiner must educate themselves on the different kinds of forgeries or document alterations. A San Diego forensic document examiner, for instance, deals with everything from handwriting identification to the identification of typewriters. They must also be knowledgeable about check writing and forgeries, and for this there is intensive education required. The forensic examiner must go through a standard baccalaureate degree program, which take approximately two years of studying and practicing their skills on a wide range of documents containing and even wider range of alterations, evidence of forgery, and the small, nuanced differences between writing utensils and machines. This intensive style of study and practice is essential to the graduated examiner as they will soon be able to put their skills to use in the legal system. By definition, a document is anything that conveys a message by words, symbols, or some other marks. The examiner is trained to find any kind of aberration in the text or created documents that might lead them to a final truth. A claim of an altered check could be the byproduct of something as simple as a third party adding a zero to the final sum to be cashed, changing the original total. Not only is this considered a kind of forgery, but falls under the category of “Obliterations and Alterations.” More often than not, when an allegation of obliteration or alteration occurs, the examiner uses a VSC, or Video Spectral Comparator, which uses an infrared CCD camera to help spot the offending The examiner must also be well-versed in the makes, models, styles of keys, and styles of ribbon used in typewriters. While the typewriter is not nearly as prevalent in today’s society, its many moving parts allow for every document produced within it to be treated like a fingerprint of sorts. Often times, a certain key won’t strike hard enough against the paper, leaving the letter to look half-printed. It’s this kind of clue that a document examiner looks for when examining older documents (wills, trusts, letters) that pre-date the age of the computer. In order to verify the authenticity of many of these documents (some being truly historical in nature), the examiner must know each and every fine detail, from the ink used at the time to the way certain writing implements were used as well. Handwriting identification is another method used to examine a document. In cases of forged documents, comparing one signature to the one in question is the simplest way to find out if some crime has occurred. Everyone has their own style of writing, stemming from the diction (chosen words) used all the way to the way the letter “L” loops when capitalized and written in the cursive style. Once these methods have been used, the examiner must then decide if certain stylistic changes within the letters are either simply a “variation” or if they are a genuine “difference.” A variation occurs as a constant change of style within the parameters of a single text. The key word here is “constant” as it means the same writer composed all the text, but simply adjusted their style due to a particular connection of letters or words. A difference occurs when that stylistic change does not occur on a regular or semi-regular basis, which would lead the examiner to believe that the document had been edited, forged, or in some way altered. So if you ever run into a San Diego forensic document examiner, be sure to ask them about some of the intricacies of their job or even what some of their most interesting examinations have been in the past. You may find yourself easily enthralled.
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