Valuable Tips to Save You Time
Mathematical Percentages (For Attorneys)
When the handwriting expert is cross-examined, the opposing attorney will usually ask, “Was this signature written by the suspect? ‘Yes’ or ‘No’?”
He then might also ask the expert to translate the degrees of certainty into percentages: "How sure are you that this signature is by the suspect? 80%? 90%?" Such questions are irrelevant in the area of questioned documents. The industry wide standard in document examination is to use probability statements rather than numbers. Remember, expert witnesses deal only with degrees of certainty and not with Mathematical Percentages.
How to obtain the best exemplars?
In most cases, it is important to get handwriting samples written before the incident occurred. Pre-incident samples are natural, spontaneous and, therefore, considered stronger evidence than post-incident samples.
What about post incident samples?
To cover all the bases, get pre-incident and post-incident samples. Both are important keys. In some cases, what is written in pre-incident samples does not match up to the same combination of letters in the questioned document. Being able to compare the “before” and “after” samples provides the expert with critical evidence, especially if the suspect tries to alter his or her handwriting.
Where can I find handwriting samples?
You can find natural spontaneous handwriting in the suspect’s personnel file, memos, affidavits, bank signature cards, credit cards, deeds, credit application forms, etc.
|
