Forensic handwriting examination: An updated clinical review

Abstract

ABSTRACT Handwriting is a unique property of an individual; no two individual has similar handwritings. Forensic handwriting examination is an important part of forensic document examination. Handwriting at crime scene provides evidence or clues about type of crime, nature of crime to the investigating officer and also find out identity of suspect or criminal. Handwriting examination involves the examination of various parameters in the writing which includes handwriting positions, surface used for handwriting, pen pressure, handwriting strokes, slants in writing, letter spacing, line quality, etc., handwriting examination is done based on the principle that no two individuals can write exactly alike. Forensic handwriting analysis is a pattern-based science that examines significant, repeated handwriting traits in questioned writing comparing and evaluating these traits in the known writing. If significant similarities are determined without differences, this may lead to a handwriting recognition. Nowadays, an automated computer-based identification and examination system are developed for forensic document examination which is more feasible to use a computer-assisted system in forensic identification of source issues related with questioned document analysis. Experimental eye-tracking is a technologically novel way of forensic handwriting examination. These studies may have future relevance in developing technology that can be linked to the computer in evaluating handwriting, especially in programming software that evaluates handwriting similar to the way a human examiner evaluates handwriting.