Disguised Signatures: Random or Repetitious?

In an effort to determine if people use the same disguise repeatedly, 62 writers at the San Diego Sheriff’s Crime Laboratory participated in a study and were asked to provide both a natural and a disguised signature on specimen checks. Approximately 1 month later, they were again asked to provide a disguised signature on another specimen check. In addition to documenting methods of disguise used, this study focused on determining whether people tend to disguise their signatures in the same manner each time. Results showed that approximately 89% of the participants disguised their signatures in the same way on each occasion. It is believed that information from this study will prove useful in caseswhere forensic document examiners encounter multiple cases involving repeated disguise of an individual’s signature.