Handwriting Characteristics

Skill level- can best be described as an appreciation of beauty as applied to handwriting.

Slant- refers to the angle of inclination of writing or a letter of writing from the base line of that writing. It may be forward and leaning to the right, or "backhand" if it leans to the left.
 Form- is the pictorial representation of a letter or writing movement. A highly visible dissimilarity in the form of the same letter found in both the questioned and standard material is an inherent difference in handwriting.

Movement-This is the manner in which the pen moves in order to form a letter.

Proportion- generally refers to the symmetry of an individual letter.

Height ratios- are a comparison or correlation of the height of one letter or letter segment to another letter, usually within the same word or signature.

A portion of writing as small and as innocuous as an "i" dot may at times become a prominent identifying characteristic.

"T" crossings occupy much the same weight, or more, for the document examiner as the "i" dot does. A "t" crossing may go from right to left, left to right, it may incline up, incline down, or be perfectly horizontal.

Loops- found in a cursively written letter may be symmetrical or may be flat on one side and therefore be asymmetrical.

This concept is the study of changing width of a line as pen pressure varies.

Alignment To Baseline-This is simply the relationship of the questioned writing to a baseline.  It is the adherence of the writing to either a preformed (printed) or imaginary baseline.

Pen Lift- Here we note where the writing implement lifts from the paper, usually interior to a word or signature.

Pen speed is often an essential element of the examination process. As will be discussed elsewhere, fast, fluid pen movement is difficult to duplicate by a forger.

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