Handwriting Analyst reveals hidden clues for behavioral Analysis profiling
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By: Paula A. Sassi, Certified Graphologist
Handwriting Consultants International
Your Professional Handwriting Analyst

Written especially for the National Association of Fraud Investigators

Handwriting provides a vast resource of hidden clues that can be readily applied to behavioral profiling in criminal cases. As early as the 1930's, handwriting was established as a valid form of self-expression. In the statistically proven research of G. W. Allport and P. E. Vernon published in 1933 in their landmark text, "Studies in Expressive Movement", their findings clearly state "From our results it appears that a man's gesture and handwriting both reflect an essentially stable and constant individual style. His expressive activities seem not to be dissociated and unrelated to one another, but rather to be organized and well-patterned. Furthermore, the evidence indicates that there is congruence between expressive movement and the attitudes, traits, values, and other dispositions of the inner personality".

Handwriting is evaluated in questioned document cases involving fraud and forgery in order to establish true authorship because every person has his or her own style of penmanship which is as unique to them as their fingerprints. However, handwriting can actually go beyond simply identifying the authorship of the questioned writing. By applying the principles of handwriting and content analysis, even when the writing is an attempt to disguise the true script, certain inferences can be made in profiling the personality of the writer.

Case in point, the notorious "Anthrax Letters" recently received by members of the news media and government agencies. The consensus of opinion among document examiners is that all of the envelopes and letters are of the same authorship. The question remaining is the true identity of the writer. Here is where handwriting analysis can lend further insight. Even though the documents are written in block print, an obvious method of disguise, they contain some "glitches' that can provide a profile of the writer. The following are some observations made by this handwriting analyst:

  1. 1. The printing is bold and strong with no curved or connected strokes and wide spacing between words. The writer, therefore, is most likely a male who is a socially distancing type and is emotionally detached.

  2. 2. The overall downward slope of the printing indicates a depressed, negative and fatalistic attitude.

  3. 3. The numbers used in the addresses and dates are made with serifs on the number one, which is more prevalent in European and other foreign script.

  4. 4. The use of capital letters on every word reveals a reactive and egotistical personality type. This person may be given to unexpected outbursts with a need to validate himself as someone that can control and dominate others.

  1. 5. In one of the threatening letters the t-crosses are heavily retraced indicating anxiety and brutality.

  2. 6. All of the letters contain very basic sentence structures and there is a misspelling of the word "penicillin". The writer is probably of average intelligence and therefore would not be capable of mastering the scientific knowledge to produce such a high grade of anthrax.

  3. 7. Some of the sentence structure used in the letters, i.e. "This is next" and "We have this anthrax" overuse the pronoun/adjective "this" which is common in speakers of English as a foreign language.

  4. 8. The statement "Allah is Great" is a valid translation of the Arabic language which would be "God is Bigger" or "God is Great".

  1. 9. In the letter asking the question "Are you afraid?", to the trained eye the shape of the question mark appears to be made in a strained and uncomfortable manner. The same strain may occur if an American writer were asked to make a question mark upside down or sideways. This one stroke seemed especially suspicious. For instance, in comparing this form with the Arabian alphabet, it was found that there are several strokes in Arabic that have this movement, notably the forms for "s" and "sh".

Question Mark in Letter Arabian Alphabet Forms
  This form is made with or without the rounded forms depending on its placement in the word.

Conclusion:

The profile that can be compiled from the handwriting and content analysis is as follows:

  1. The writer is male and of foreign extraction, most likely from an Arabic speaking country.
  2. He has received minimal training in the English language either in his own country or an English speaking country other than the United States.
  3. Though a loner by nature, he must be working with a group that can mastermind this type of attack. He simply is the "hit man" who is carrying out the delivery of the deadly messages. Motivated by anger, hatred and a need to dominate, he justifies his behavior as a way of gaining tyrannical control for his cause.

Based on these inferences, it is the opinion of this handwriting analyst that the writer is part of the terrorist group involved in the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center. Though this profile may conflict with other reports, the evidence is in the script and only further investigation will give the final answer.

SUGGESTIONS FOR INVESTIGATION:

Using what little evidence is available from the Anthrax envelopes and letters the following areas of investigation are suggested:

  1. Most of the known terrorists enrolled in adult education classes in English or took aviation training. Adult schools and community colleges require registration forms. These forms are generally printed and can provide exemplars for comparison.
  2. A return address of a school was used on one or two of the letters. Although the school is non-existent, the writer or the group may have some connection to a grade school in the New Jersey area. Parents and relatives of children fitting this profile could be investigated through the applications on record at these schools.

The above behavioral profile is based solely on factors found in the writing and it is not intended to intimate any specific ethnic group. The evidence presented is consistent with the principles of handwriting analysis and basic language structure. It is the hope of this handwriting analyst that these observations may help in some way to bring to justice those who have committed these acts of terrorism.

Your Professional Handwriting Analyst