Forensic science applies scientific knowledge and techniques to criminal law. Part scientist and part detective, the forensic scientist collects, examines and reports on evidence from criminal activity. The field is complex and broad; involving many other disciplines from the law enforcement, legal system and government authorities. While forensic science is often used in crimes, some aspects of the field such as ink analysis can be used to assign rightful authorship of a text or to pinpoint the date something was written. However, most forensic science including ink analysis is used as evidence in criminal cases. The forensic scientist can perform any or all of the following activities: “visits crime scene to find evidence; analyzes physical evidence such as fibers, glass, debris, firearms, bullets and marks made by tools or weapons; identifies drugs found on people or at crime scenes; analyzes biological evidence such as hair, blood and body fluids; analyzes body tissues for poisons; writes reports on the results; gives evidence in court; may investigate civil court cases such as fire or insurance claims; may test race horses and racing dogs [and athletes] for substances that many affect their performance” (Haratutanga 1).
The focus of this research is on the analysis of ink, often an important aspect of crime solving, particularly crimes involving documentation. There are a host of crimes that provide the need for ink analysis including but not limited to: forgery; authorship disputes; insurance fraud; counterfeiting; kidnapping random notes; illegal correspondence sent via the mail (bomb threats, death threats, etc.); contested wills or other important documents. One significant aspect of forensic science that often deals with ink analysis is known as examination of questioned documents. When a document is question in a legal matter there are many aspect of investigation that can occur. Handwriting analysis, type...