CRJ 311: Forensic Science

Lecture 10 - Documents, Computer Forensics and the Future

1. Introduction to Document Examination
a. Document examiners:

b. What is handwriting?

2. What is a Questioned Document?

a. Questioned document:

b. Examples:

3. Forensic Document Examination

a. Forensic document examination:

i. GOAL:
b. Forensic linguist:

4. The Unabomber
a. Who is Ted Kaczynski?
b. Who did he target?
c. How did he get caught?

5. Handwriting Comparisons
a. How do we determine authenticity?
b. What are the different types of variations?
c. What are the “other factors”?

6. Kurt Cobain Suicide

a. Why was Kurt Cobain’s suicide letter up for debate?

7. Typewriters and Printing Devices

a. Examiners are asked the two most common requests?
b. Style, shape and size are…

8. Typewriters and Printing Devices “Characteristics from Use”

a. Wear and damage to printer or typewriters moving parts will occur.
b. How can we identify the machine?
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 c. Why is typewriter ribbon useful?
d. Are modern computers helpful?

9. Digital Technology
a. Today, examiners identify the make and model of photocopiers, fax machines and
computer printers used to produce questioned documents.
b. A side-by-side comparison is made to compare what?

10. Alterations
a. Erasures:

i. Examples:
b. Additions and obliterations:

c. Infrared photography:

d. How are inks useful?

11. Other Document Problems

a. Indented writing:

b. Can you tell what was written on a pad of paper?

c. What do they use to determine this?

12. Voice Examination

a. The human voice is unique and can provide evidence to indentify an individual.
b. What makes for unique voice patterns?
c. What makes for different voice articulations?

13. Sound Spectrograph

a. Sound spectrograph can compare two voice samples.
b. What are the seven categories?

14. Intro to Computer Forensics

a. Computers have permeated society and are used in countless ways with innumerable
applications.
b. What do computers and other electronic data leave behind?
c. Computer forensics:

15. Forensic Image Acquisition

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 a. Items that have been seized will need to be analyzed for data
b. Example: Hard Disk Drive (HDD)

16. Visible Data

a. Visible data:

b. From an evidentiary standpoint, it can be any type of user create data like:

17. Latent Data

a. Latent data:

i. RAM slack:
ii. File slack:
b. Where else can latent data be found?

18. BTK Killer

a. Who was the BTK killer?
b. What does BTK stand for?
c. How did he get caught?

19. Introduction to Internet Technology

a. Internet:

b. Is anyone untouched by the internet?

c. What is the major impact to forensic science?

20. Scott Peterson

a. Who was Scott Peterson?
b. What crime did he commit?
c. How did he get caught?

21. The Future of Forensics

a. Crime laboratories:
b. Chromatography and spectrophotometry:
c. DNA typing:

22. New Developments

a. New instruments and techniques:
b. What has undergone a major facelift?
c. Linking of personal computers to analytical equipment