Forensic Friday: Questioned Documents

Forensic Friday: Questioned Documents

When most people think of forensics, they think of bodies and blood, guns and bullet wounds, tool marks, poison, murder, footprints, and fingerprints. Certainly, those are pieces of evidence that forensic scientists study on a regular basis.

However, there are also non-violent, even subtle items that are just as dangerous to their victims. Nowadays computers are used to commit the same crimes, but not too many years ago criminals used paper to perform these egregious acts. Ransom notes, hold-up notes, extortion notes, altered business records, bogus checks and counterfeit bills. They can be documents needing proof of genuineness or forgery such as wills, contracts, deeds, charge slips, lottery tickets, insurance forms, or medical records.

If you've ever watched the National Treasure movies, you saw the main characters try to prove the veracity of documents. They also found a secret code using lemon juice and a hair dryer. Does that work? Perhaps if Mythbusters were still around, we could find out.

According to the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners the definition of forensic document examination "relates to the identification of handwriting, typewriting, the authenticity of signatures, alterations in documents, the significance of inks and papers, photocopying processes, writing instruments, sequence of writings and other elements of a document."

Document examiners compare colors, sizes, shapes, and inconspicuous microscopic items. Micro chemical analysis is used during ink identifications and ink comparisons. Handwriting analysis is large part of a forensic document examiners job. The scientist does not use the word forgery which implies intent. Rather their report may read: "The questioned John Doe signature on the contract is not the genuine signature of John Doe. It is a signature written by some other writer who attempted to imitate the genuine signature of John Doe."

Here are some of the questions that might be asked during a document examination:

• Is the signature on this document genuine or is it an imitation?
• Who wrote the signature or other writing on the document?
• Can this suspect be eliminated as the writer of the questioned writing?
• Was the document signed or prepared on the document's date?
• Was this document produced on this specific printer? (or typewriter in the "olden days")
• What kind of printer produced this document?
• Can this questioned photocopy be connect to one make of copier and/or one specific copier?
• Have pages been substituted in this multi-page document?
• Have pen entries been added at a later time to this document?
• Can you restore or decipher the text of the original entries that have been erased, eradicated, or obliterated on this document?
• Have the original ink entries on this document been altered by the addition of new ink entries?
• Can you decipher the entries on these burned documents?
• How long as the ink signature been on the document? What is the age of the ink?
• Were the pencil entries on this document written with more than one pencil? How many?

This is a fascinating area of study. Lots of room for plot development too!

Traveling Tuesday: The Mariana Islands

Traveling Tuesday: The Mariana Islands

Prior to WWII, the majority of Americans did not travel past a few miles of where they were born. Then the war came, and men were sent to corners of the globe that no one had ever heard of. Newspapers featured maps on the front page, and U.S. citizens suddenly became geography experts.

Located in the North Pacific Ocean, the Mariana islands comprise a crescent-shaped archipelago. Only four of the islands are inhabited-Guam, Saipan, Rota, and Tinian. Mostly dormant volcanic mountains, they were named for Queen Mariana by the Spaniards. The Marianas can be found south of Japan, west of Hawaii, north of New Guinea, and east of the Philippines. The islands remained a Spanish colony under the central government of the Philippines until 1898. When Spain lost the Spanish-American war, the islands were sold to Germany. After WWI, Germany's colonies were placed in trust under the League of Nations. As a result, the Mariana Islands were assigned to Japan.

Then came WWII, and these and many other Pacific islands saw heavy fighting. At the end of the war, the Mariana's were once again put into trust. However, this time they were assigned to the U.S. Several years later, they became a U.S. Territory. Guam is a separate U.S. territory from the other Mariana Islands, mostly because of the different histories experienced by the islands. Guam was occupied by Japan during wartime for nearly three years. The northern islands were peacefully occupied by Japan for over thirty years.

Today tourism is a large part of the economy for the Northern Mariana Islands with visitors primarily from China, Korea, and Russia.

Wartime Wednesday: Sonja Henie

Wartime Wednesday: Sonja Henie

Sonja at the height of
her career

Long before there were boy-bands and teenaged celebrities, there was Sonja Henie. Born in Oslo, Norway in 1912, Sonja was adept at many sports, but settled on ice skating as her first love. By age fourteen, she won her first world championship, and captured the title for the next nine years. In a sport dominated by men, where women’s competitions were an afterthought, she burst onto the scene and captured the hearts of audiences. After a successful amateur skating career, she transitioned to Hollywood star with seemingly little effort.

Credited with being the first female skater to wear short skirts, white boots, and use dance choreography, Sonja’s skating techniques were groundbreaking. Her glamorous persona transformed the sport and its place in the Olympic games. However, she was not without controversy.

Henie with Hitler in 1936

The 1936 Olympics were held in Berlin, Germany, and Hitler was in attendance. Reports indicate Sonja skated into the rink at full speed and skidded to a stop in front of where Hitler was sitting. She raised her arm and declared, “Heil, Hitler.” Her colleagues were stunned, and the newspapers had a field day questioning “Is Sonja a Nazi?” According to her brother Leif, Sonja claimed, “I don’t even know what a Nazi is.”

However she may have learned during the lunch she had with Hitler at his nearby hideaway, Berchtesgaden. She kept up her Nazi connections after her movie career started. Joseph Goebbels personally handled the released of her film “One in a Million,” in Germany. During Germany’s occupation of Norway, troops reported that Hitler’s autographed photo resided on the piano in the Henie living room. As potential proof of her collaboration, none of the Henie property was damaged or confiscated during the occupation. Although supportive of the Allied cause through appearances in USO shows, Sonja never made any negative comments against the Nazis during the war.

Was she political? Did she have Nazi leanings? According to Dick Button, two time gold Olympic gold medalist, “She was an opportunist…I don’t think she could have cared less who Hitler was, except for whatever power he had and what it would do for her career.”

Whatever her connection to Germany, Americans loved her in film and on ice. Her Hollywood career was so successful, her estate was valued at more than $45 million at the time of her death in 1969 at the age of 57.

Mystery Monday: Foyle's War

Mystery Monday: Foyle’s War

I’m an anglophile – I love all things British. I watch BBC television, have a subscription to Britain magazine, and keep up with what’s happening in the British Isles through any number of means. I love crime fiction, and my favorite show is Foyle’s War. It combines my interest in WWII, England, and mysteries.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, let me give you the premise. Christopher Foyle is a veteran of The Great War and a Detective Chief Inspector on the south coast in the village of Hastings. Widowed, he has one son to whom he is very close. Their relationship is evidenced by dialogue and exchanged glances rather than demonstrated with hugs or physical contact. Foyle would rather be making a direct impact on the war by serving with the War Office in some way, but unfortunately, his requests for transfer are always turned down.

Historical details are highly accurate, and viewers are educated about the era often through clever dialogue. For example, Foyle’s driver, Samantha Stewart, has a voracious appetite. Her struggles with rationing are a bit of a running gag throughout the series. During one show, a group of youngsters collect scrap in an effort to win a contest. The kids come to the police station a couple of times to pick up items, but Foyle repeatedly forgets to bring stuff in to work. He comments that the children are going to accuse him of being a “fifth columnist.”

In front of Foyle's House

Although a police procedural, the show is anything but dry. Each episode intertwines a crime, a home front issue, and personal situations of the characters, and I was disappointed when the show ceased production.

In March 2015, I was visited Hastings. It was very exciting to follow in DCI Foyle’s footsteps.

 

Forensic Friday: Computers

Forensic Friday: Computers

Computer Forensics

According to www.searchsecurity.techtarget.com/definition, computer forensics is “the application of investigation and analysis techniques to gather and preserve evidence from a particular computing device in a way that is suitable for presentation in a court of law.” The goal is to examine digital media in such a manner as to identify, preserve, recover, and analyze the digital information to be able to present facts and opinions about the information.

Although most often associated with the investigation of computer crime, computer forensics is also used during civil cases. In addition to data recovery, forensics are used to create an audit trail. In the early 1980s computers became more accessible to the public. As a result, criminal activity increased with crimes such as hacking or the use of computers to commit fraud. The by early 2000s, other crimes such as pornography, espionage, and cyberstalking surfaced.

Dr. Conrad Murray

The good news is that computer forensics has helped solve numerous crimes. Two of the more famous cases are the BTK Killer Dennis Rader. He sent letters to the police on a floppy disc. Metadata within the documents led authorities to Rader’s arrest. Michael’s Jackson’s doctor, Dr. Conrad Murray was convicted by digital evidence on his computer that included medical documentation showing lethal amounts of the drug Propofol.

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Traveling Tuesday: Belgium

Traveling Tuesday: Belgium

Map of Belgium during WWII

Belgium is nestled between Germany, France, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Their population of eleven million people is culturally split in two-the Dutch-speaking, Flemish communities (59%), and the French-speaking population (41%). There is a tiny-group of German-speaking people along the German border. Originally part of the Netherlands, Belgium seceded in 1830.

Worn out after WWI, Belgium had no desire to be involved in a war in Europe. The country declared itself neutral when the hostilities began. As such, they signed a neutrality agreement with Germany and pulled themselves out of the Locarno Treaty of 1925. The military reorganized into a defensive unit, and fortifications were built along the country’s borders. However, their force was no match for the Germans who invaded Belgium on May 10, 1940 as part of its campaign to capture France.

Belgium occupation WWII

 Realizing his cause was lost, King Leopold III, surrendered on May 28^th, and was held a prisoner during the remainder of the war. The Belgium government fled to England, and the military fought alongside the Allies. The King became the focus for the Belgium Resistance-their slogan “The king is captive! Long live the king!” rallied people to the cause. During the occupation, Germany instituted a tax to handle the cost of governing the country. Reports indicate that nearly two-thirds of Belgium’s national income was paid out for these charges.

It is surmised that almost five percent of the population (Both Dutch- and French-speaking) was involved in the Resistance. In addition to sabotage of the military infrastructure, activities include assassinations of collaborators, publication of underground newspapers, gathering of intelligence, and maintaining escape networks to help Allied airmen. Resistance work was dangerous, and nearly twenty-five percent of the group lost their lives by the end of war.

The Allied liberation of Belgium began in September 1944, and the country was fully liberated by February 4, 1945.