http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-science-gsr-chemical-analysis.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-science-gsr-chemical-analysis.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Crime scene investigators (CSI's) must inspect any suspect's face, hands, and clothing and get samples. The archaic paraffin test, where melted wax is used to recover residues from the firearm user's hands, is no longer used anymore. Instead, CSI's obtain GSR residue by swabbing the suspect's hands, arms, and clothing with a moist Q-tip or filter paper.

Chemical analysis looks closely for byproducts of the burning of primer and gun powder. Specifically, forensic scientists look for the metals lead, antimony, and barium. The Q-tip or filter paper is then treated with a solution of diphenylamine, a chemical that interacts with metals by producing a color change. The test is positive if the color blue is produced. However, this test could be a false-positive result. Nitrogen-containing compounds such as fertilizer, tobacco, cosmetics, and urine can also interact with the amino group of diphenylamine to contribute to this false-positive. Therefore, it is up to the forensic scientist to confirm the results with more definitive testing.

Sometimes GSR can be found on the shooter's clothing or in his hair if not found on his hands. To make this determination, a scanning electron microscope (SEM) many times can locate these minute GSR particles. The extreme temperatures of an explosion can melt and deform these particles. This can identify products of a firearm's combustion. SEM is many times used in conjunction with energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) to determine a chemical fingerprint of the substance being tested. The presence of lead, antimony, and barium in these tiny particles while using SEM/EDX technology highly indicates that the substance is in fact GSR.


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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-trace-evidence-tracing-gunshot-gases-and-particles.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-trace-evidence-tracing-gunshot-gases-and-particles.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
The combination of chemicals and particles of these gases are collectively known as gunshot residue (GSR). Gunshot residue sticks to the firearm user's hand, arm, clothing, hair, and face. They also stick to nearby walls, curtains, or future and on the victim's clothing and skin in close-up shootings.

Weather such as wind and rain can alter the pattern of or reduce the spread of the cloud of GSR. In effect, the forensic firearms expert may find GSR in places he would least expect. On white clothing, GSR patterns are easily identifiable as smudges or smears, but on dark, multicolored, or blood-soaked clothing, the patterns are not too evident.

GSR residues can be identified by infrared photography under substandard circumstances. The Griess test may also identify the pattern. This test involves the use of filter paper soaked in vinegar that when pressed over the area in question and then immersed in a reagent that interacts with the nitrogen containing compounds found in GSR yields a GSR pattern. Photographic paper can also be used in place of filter paper to reveal evidence of a GSR pattern.

The next time you watch your favorite CSI TV show, you will have a better understanding of what the procedures are when criminal scientists run tests to disclose the presence of a GSR pattern made of gases and particles.

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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-getting-writing-samples.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-getting-writing-samples.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
To make this determination, the handwriting examiner will require several standard handwriting samples, or standards as it is called, in order to gain some insight on the person's writing style and ascertain whether or not that person wrote the questionable note. To make matters worse, standard writing samples may have been created with a different writing instrument and under different events surrounding the document. Therefore, making comparisons of a questioned document to a known writing sample on another document may be an impossibility.

If no usable nonrequested standard handwriting samples, existing writing samples known to be authentic, are around, the forensic handwriting analyst then asks the suspected author to provide a writing sample while using a pen or pencil and paper similar to the questioned document so that the forensic investigator can establish what is known as a requested standard handwriting sample.

Nonrequested standards are advantageous for several reasons. The most important reason is that the nonrequested samples disclose the writer's true writing style and disclose words and phrases that the writer uses on a regular basis. This can be used as strong evidence against the writer. For instance, old documents and letters may contain keyword phrases that are consistent with the ones used in a suicide note. The major disadvantage of nonrequested standard handwriting samples is that they too must be authenticated. If they can not be directly linked to the author, they do not have much value to the criminal investigator.

It is a fact that handwriting styles change throughout our lives. Therefore, examiners try to get writing samples from documents written by a suspected writer that are consistent with the time when a questioned document is apparently written. Let us pretend that an examiner is requested to ascertain whether a 15-year-old, handwritten document such as a will is authentic and was really written by the apparent writer. The forensic handwriting analyst will require examining other documents written by the apparent writer from 15 years ago because those documents will be consistent with his writing style of that time period when the will was prepared.

The biggest advantage of requested handwriting samples is that they are already authentic. The forensic handwriting examiner visually inspects the person write his name. The investigator also can request that the person write out a specific sentence similar to one found in a questioned document so that the examiner can make comparisons between the two sentences verbatim. Sometimes the questioned document contains information that the examiner does not want to disclose to the suspect. In this case, the examiner requests the suspect write out a sentence containing keyword phrases that were used in the questioned document.

Requested handwriting samples are not without their disadvantages too. Some people become nervous and therefore concentrate too hard on providing a writing sample. This can yield uncharacteristic abnormalities in the manner they normally write and sign their names. For this reason, minimal changes are presented that make it difficult to make an accurate comparison.

The suspected author may also knowingly attempt to disguise his writing style so that his handwriting sample does not match the writing on a forged check, will, or some other questioned document. It is unfortunate for the handwriting examiner that the suspect is successful in changing his writing style such that getting a consistent match is difficult.

One way to circumvent this problem is to have the suspect write a great deal of content over several pages. Even though changing your style is easy when writing short phrases, the more you write over several pages, the more your cognizant changes give way to your normal manner of writing. Verbally repeating the same content to the suspected writer several times is another trick that handwriting analysts use to stifle anybody's attempts at disguising his normal handwriting style. With each attempt, the suspect is more likely to use different styles. A keen examiner then discovers the hidden elements of his writing style and the devices that the perpetrator used to hide them within the requested writing before the comparison is made.

Criminal investigators are not worried about a suspect's reluctance to provide a handwriting sample. One might think that providing a handwriting sample will violate the Fifth Amendment which states that a person has the right not to incriminate himself. According to the U.S. Supreme Court in a case, Gilbert v. the State of California, handwriting is part of the identifying physical characteristics that are not protected under the Fifth Amendment. Therefore, the court can order a suspect to provide a handwriting standard even if he is reluctant.

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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-comparing-handwriting-between-two-different-documents.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-comparing-handwriting-between-two-different-documents.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
In this article, I will attempt to explain what forensic handwriting examiners look for when comparing handwriting between one document such as a suicide note to a known document containing the person's handwriting.

When making comparisons between two handwritten documents, a forensic handwriting analyst looks for points of consistency and points of discrepancy between the known handwriting standards and the questioned document. The forensic scientist looks for the following:

• Content--Grammar, punctuation, and diction help steer the analyst toward consistent mistakes, repeated phrases, and other hints that suggest at the author's ethnicity or educational level.


• Overall form--The shape, size, slant, proportion, and the beginning and ending strokes of the letters are an integral part of the author's overall form.


• Format and margins--The width of the margins, consistency of the spaces between words, and the slant between lines fall into this group, which encompasses the overall form and layout of the handwriting.


• Line features--Speed of writing, fluidity, and pressure of the pen used give clues about line features as well as the spacing between the letters and words and the connectivity between the letters.

Perspicacious forensic handwriting analysts scrutinize all of these features when making comparisons among documents and signatures. No individual feature makes an accurate comparison, but a combination of features may allow analysts to find out whether suspect and sample writings came from the same person. Based on what they find in their examination, the forensic analyst may conclude that the documents are one of the following:

• Perfectly match


• Mostly match


• Somewhat match


• Do not match at all

Not every analysis yields an answer. The forensic handwriting analyst may also say that he can not come to a conclusion based on the given samples. That particular outcome is not very common. If the handwriting in question is cursive or a signature, a highly trained analyst usually can ascertain whether a certain person created it. If, on the other hand, the questioned document is printed, this job is way too difficult because many of the distinctive characteristics of cursive handwriting are not present in printed material.

To the benefit of law enforcement authorities, many perpetrators are not that smart. This is very evident in written documents, where misspellings are commonplace. Forensic document analysts take advantage of these mistakes. When suspected authors of forged checks or ransom notes are requested to provide handwriting samples for comparison, analysts usually ask them to use the same keyword phrases that were misspelled in the questioned document. If a suspect is the author of a document in question, he or she will misspell the exact same words.

The federal government maintains a database of handwriting samples. The National Fraudulent Check File, Bank Robbery Note File, and the Anonymous Letter File are all operated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). These databases contain reference files to which forensic handwriting analysts can compare some questionable documents. There are other high-tech databases that exist such as the Forensic Information System for Handwriting (FISH). The FISH database contains scanned and digitized documents that authorities can make comparisons with. Forensic document analysts visually inspect any consistencies.

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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-catching-handwriting-forgers.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-catching-handwriting-forgers.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 Forgery refers to writing or changing a document with the intention of defrauding others. Forensic handwriting analysts may be able to ascertain whether a document was changed or written by somebody other than the stated author, but finding out whether the writer's intention was to defraud others is the decision of a judge or jury.

Even the most meticulous and gifted forgers leave behind evidence of their work. Forensic handwriting analysts visually inspect documents with the naked eye as well as with the use of a microscope. Microscopes many times disclose sure signs of forgery.

Two of the more common techniques of forgery are tracing and freehand simulation.

Tracing refers to putting another document over an original signature and tracing its lines. Freehand simulation refers to copying a signature or handwriting sample. Both methods lead to various abnormalities in the handwriting. A trained forensic handwriting analyst is able to detect these defects. Perfectly emulating somebody else's handwriting style is a difficult task to accomplish.

A list of common clues that make forged handwritings stand out include:

• Evidence of a previous sketch--This can involve an underlying tracing of the letters, words, or signature


• Tremors in the forger's hand--When the forger tries to copy a signature or writing style, he leaves behind fine yet distinctive markings indicating shakiness or tremors in his handwriting


• Inconsistent writing speed and pen pressure


• Hesitations


• Unusual pen lifting--The forger repeatedly lifts his pen to check his handiwork.


• Patching and retouching--Fixing or adding to broken marks to make the marks look connected and therefore the handwriting more fluid


• Dull beginnings and endings

Another type of forgery is called disguised writing. Disguised writing refers to deception in which the forger tries to hide his own handwriting. Many ransom letters and letters of intimidation are written in this manner with the hope that the writer can negate ownership at a future time. Offenders sometimes try to disguise their handwriting when confronted with an incriminating letter they wrote in their own natural style of handwriting.

The next time you watch your favorite CSI TV show, you will have a better understanding of what forensic handwriting analysts look for when examining handwritten documents.

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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-forging-checks-by-adding-extra-zeros.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-handwriting-analysis-forging-checks-by-adding-extra-zeros.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Under a microscope, subtle differences between the real and the fake, or forged, parts of the document may be evident. Minimal changes in the color of the ink, thickness of the lines, and pressure of the pen may become noticeable. If the expert forger used a ballpoint or fountain pen, distinctive markings from defects in either kind of pen tip may reveal something to the forensic handwriting analyst.

Overwriting refers to a type of forgery in which the forger does not obliterate anything on a document but rather adds to or overwrites a part of it. Perhaps a 4 may be overwritten to look like a 9 on a check. If the forger uses the same ink that was used to create the first document, it would be extremely difficult to uncover such kinds of changes. If the same kind of ink and/or pen is not available to the forger, he will have to improvise and use whatever is available at his disposal. By carefully inspecting the different types of ink, the forensic handwriting analyst may discover places in a document that may have been altered.

Even though two kinds of inks may look the same under normal light, they usually look different when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) or infrared (IR) light. Each kind of ink reacts differently when exposed to UV light. For instance, one type may fluoresce, or glow, and another kind may disappear from view. Infrared photography is another technique used to clearly discern the difference between two kinds of ink. If either of these lighting methods is not helpful, the forensic handwriting analyst may have to analyze the chemical composition of the inks to show that there really are two different inks.


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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-document-analysis-looking-for-clues-in-typewritten-documents.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-document-analysis-looking-for-clues-in-typewritten-documents.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
In this article, I will attempt to explain what forensic document analysts look for when they come across a printed document that is used in the commission of a crime.

If they are not using pen or pencil and paper, perpetrators often use typewriters to write letters of intimidation or ransom notes. The offenders frequently have the false sense of security that committing such an act makes the letter or note untraceable. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Whenever a typewriter is used to create a questionable document, the forensic document analyst tries to:

• Find out the make and model of the typewriter


• Compare the note with a suspect typewriter

Determining the make and model of a typewriter means that the forensic document analyst must have access to a list of typefaces used in different models of new and old typewriters. Many typewriter manufacturers use either pica or elite typefaces. However, the size, shape, and style of the letter are different, making the analyst's job difficult. After careful examination of a typed document, the analyst may be able to find out the make and model of the typewriter that created it. Doing so may help shorten the list of exact machines that created the document. On the downside, today's printers may use daisy-wheel, ink-jet, dot-matrix, or laser printing technologies. These printers vary slightly such that document analysts many times can not discern one from another.

To find out whether a particular typewriting machine created a questionable document, forensic document analysts search for unique characteristics that can involve misaligned or damaged letters, inconsistent spacing before or after certain letters, and inconsistencies in the pressure applied to the page by some letters. For instance, particular letters can have grooves or spurs that are imprinted on a piece of paper. These letters can also slant toward one side or print slightly higher or lower than the rest of the letters on the page. Such abnormalities can be compared to a sample page taken from a suspect typewriter and thus provide powerful individualizing qualities that are unique only to that typewriter.

To make comparisons between a questioned document and a particular typewriter, the forensic document analyst types up a comparison document taken from the suspect typewriter. While doing this, the analyst uses a ribbon that is similar in type and condition to the one used to create the original document. The reason for this is that a worn ribbon will show minor abnormalities in the typeface. On the other hand, a brand new ribbon containing fresh ink may hide them.

Typewriting machines that use ribbons can help the forensic document analyst match a particular typewriter to the document in question. If a typewriting machine uses a single-pass ribbon, forensic scientists can simply read the message from the ribbon itself provided that the ribbon is still in the machine. Even if the ribbon has been used for several passes, criminal investigators can still retrieve parts of the message from the ribbon.

Suppose a crook used the original typewriter to include an extra line or a paragraph to a document? How does the forensic document examiner determine that his occurred? If the typeface is identical in both the original text and the added-on text, it is difficult for the examiner to determine if an alteration occurred. However, when the paper is inserted back into a typewriter for the second time, the alignment many times is off. Taking advantage of this fact, the examiner puts a specially made glass plate with an etched grid pattern on top of the page. By doing so, he can easily view any inconsistencies in the alignment of the added lines and paragraphs.

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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/dna-and-ballistics-in-forensics-handling-projectiles.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/dna-and-ballistics-in-forensics-handling-projectiles.html Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Important trace evidence may be found on bullets. Fibers, paint, and other items may stick to the bullet as it travels through or bounces off walls, windows, bricks, or doors. Sometimes, this minute piece of evidence contains DNA in cases when CSI's find small quantities of flesh and blood.

These tiny particles can be crucial in solving a case or rebuilding the scene of a crime. For instance, a girlfriend may indicate that she has not heard from her boyfriend since he left town without notice and that she has no clue as to his whereabouts. In the meantime, friends and family may insist that he would not just disappear all of a sudden. If criminalists find traces of blood on a bullet extracted from a kitchen wall and the blood is consistent with DNA found on the boyfriend's toothbrush, criminal investigators may suspect foul play, and criminal charges may follow even without the presence of a body.

The next time your watch your favorite CSI TV program, you will understand why safeguarding the evidence is very important especially with bullets found at the scene of a crime.


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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-ballistics-exam-categorizing-bullets.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/forensic-ballistics-exam-categorizing-bullets.html Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Bullets can be classified in one of four (4) categories:

• Lead bullets--These bullets are soft and typically used in low-velocity weapons like small-caliber .22 and .25 handguns and rifles. These bullets are most likely to change shape and fragment upon hitting a target. They have the least amount of penetration yet the deformation and fragmentation of the projectile can cause major soft tissue damage.


• Lead alloy bullets--These bullets contain lead and small amounts of one or more other metals that make them harder. Antimony and tin mixed in with lead are created for bullets intended for high-velocity weapons. Because of their increased hardness, these projectiles are less inclined to change shape and fragment yet more inclined to penetrate deeper into the target.


• Semijacketed bullets--These bullets have a thin layer of brass covering their sides. The nose of the bullet is exposed and is made of soft lead, allowing the bullet to expand and separate on impact. The exposed nose may be slightly hollow, hence a hollow-point bullet, which is the kind that changes shape and fragments even more causing a greater amount of tissue damage in the person that it hits. These bullets are used in low-velocity firearms as well as higher-velocity ones such as .357 and .44 magnum handguns and high-powered rifles.


• Fully jacketed bullets--These bullets are covered with brass including the tip. Also known as full metal jackets, these projectiles are usually intended for use in high-velocity firearms, such as .44 magnum handguns and high-powered rifles. They have the deepest penetration than other bullets, and instead of brass, can be coated with Teflon, nylon, and other man-made materials. These materials are hard and slippery, acting as lubricants that contribute to very high muzzle velocities and a high degree of penetrability. Many full metal jackets are armor-piercing bullets and thus are known as cop killers.

These are the groups that the forensic firearms examiner must classify a bullet found at a crime scene.

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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/review-of-the-little-runt-stun-gun.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/home-security/review-of-the-little-runt-stun-gun.html Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
The measurements of The Runt series stun guns are 3.5" in length by 2-1/8" in width by 7/8" in thickness. This gadget comes in four different "flavors": Runt 350, Runt 650, Runt 950, and Runt 950 Rechargeable. Each item puts out 350,000, 650,000 and 950,000 volts, respectively.

The Runt 950 and 950 Rechargeable is the Runt's top gun because 950,000 volts is nothing to sneeze at. It is comparable to the Stun Master Hot Shot stun gun that also puts out 900,000+ volts. However, do not let the Runt's little brothers fool you either. In fact, any of these stun guns can put out enough electricity to drop a horse. Of course, I do not recommend that you wrestle with a horse in order for you to stick him with the Runt. But you get the picture. Most law enforcement Tasers put out only 50,000 volts and are enough to electrify a raging bull.

Each of the Runts operates on three (3) CR123A lithium ion batteries which are included. The exception is the Runt 950 Rechargeable where you do not have to buy batteries since you can simply plug it into the wall and charge it up.

The unit comes with an integral safety switch on the side of the box. A 3/8" circular button is located right next to the safety switch. Simply depressing this button will emit a loud crackling sound to notify your assailant that you mean business.

Also included with the Runt is a nylon carrying case with belt loop. Yes! You can not only carry this item in your shirt pocket but also on your belt. The carrying case is black with a Velcro flap closure. When you carry the Runt on your belt, the little gadget is securely concealed and conveniently within reach whenever you feel you are in danger. The nylon carrying case resembles a cell phone or a multi-tool pocket knife case.

The physiological effects of the Runt product include:

1. some pain, muscular contraction, and shock when applied for ½ second,


2. more muscular contractions and a dazed mental state when applied for 1-2 seconds,


3. and finally, loss of balance and muscle control, and absolute mental disorientation and confusion. Your attacker will be dazed and defecating in his pants by the time he kisses the concrete.

Like all other stun guns, never press the trigger button for more than 1 second at a time because you may damage the internal circuitry and void the warranty. The probes on the stun gun must be applied to your attacker during firing.

Do not test this unit on yourself! I tested it out on my stomach once, and I immediately had to go to the toilet. It is not recommended that you use the Runt to treat constipation.

Finally, do not test the Runt on your friends, even if it is a joke. The Runt like any other stun gun will hurt and incapacitate him. Leave that to the YouTube actors who are auditioning for the TV show Jackass.

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Fabiola Castillo markets for the website NinjaCOPS Superstore. This virtual store specializes in crime prevention tools where you can buy cheap stun guns, kubaton keychains, hidden video spy surveillance cameras, nunchaku training videos, hand Tasers, expandable steel batons, and many other personal safety products.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>