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Katherine Koppenhaver, CQDE-D

Cases that Do Not Follow the Rules

and The Importance of Research

Katherine Koppenhaver has been a document examiner for the past 36 years. She has an international business. She has served as President of the National Association of Document Examiners and is Founder and President of the International Association of Document Examiners.

She has testified in court and deposition over 550 times and she has handled over 3500 cases. She has lectured at 90 seminars. She has written a course, teaches it on a weekly basis, and has trained several hundred people. She has authored several books including Forensic Document Examination: Principles and Practice

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Beverley East, MGA, CDE, CAM, DPGA

Rebuttal to Rhetoric

Beverley East is a court qualified Forensic Document Examiner who has practiced in the field for over 28 years. She has testified across the globe in the UK, USA and the Caribbean region.

In 2015 she was honored with the "Forerunner Award" by the Institute of Caribbean Studies for her work in forensic document examination. She received the trailblazer Women of Achievement Award from Flori Roberts cosmetic company in 2002.

Her opinion has been requested by the media on landmark cases such as Monica Lewinsky, Jon Benét Ramsey, and the DC Sniper. She contributed to a television documentary by National Geographic on the anthrax letters, "Uncover History – Hunting the Anthrax Killer," which aired nationally and internationally September 2009.

She is a member of National Association of Document Examiners (NADE), Scientific Association of Forensic Examiner (SAFE). She was appointed to the Ethics Committee of IADE in 2015 and served as the 2015 IADE's Conference Chair. She authenticated handwriting samples of explorer Alfred Wallace for a client from Troutman Saunders in Washington D.C., which resulted in a $4.5 million award to the client.

Ms. East hosts in-house training for bankers through the Jamaican Institute of Financial Services and accredited seminars for lawyers through the General Legal Counsel. In 2012 she designed and conducted an inaugural 18 month training course for the JCF Questioned Document Division.

Her consultancy provides services to government agencies such as the Independent Commission of Investigations (Indecom); Major Organized Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA); the Ministry of National Security, Passport and Immigration Citizenship Agency; and Antigua's Office of National Drug and Money Laundering Control Policy (ONDCP).

Ms. East is the author of three bestselling books: Finding Mr. Write–A New Slant on Selecting the Perfect Mate; Reaper of Souls – a novel based on the 1957 Kendal train crash; and Bat Mitzvah Girl – Memories of a Jamaican Child. Ebony Magazine listed her as one of six Caribbean Writers to Discover in 2015.

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Janae Long

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure-Rule 26: How it Affects Our Reports

Increasingly, States have moved toward adopting Federal rules and codes. Since changes to Federal Rule 26 were adopted in late 2010, there have been frequent and varied actions by States to adopt or change rules regarding expert reporting requirements. In fact, at least 35 States have adopted rules based upon FRCP26. Federal Courts are barring experts from testifying in cases where report criteria is not in compliance with FRCP26.

It is important for experts involved in Federal cases to fully understand report requirements, the nuances of requirements for retained vs non-retained experts, and strategies for preparing expert reports.

In changing times, it is also important for experts designated in both Federal and State cases to understand the importance of compliance to avoid being discredited or excluded by the Court. Additionally, understanding of Federal Rules can help all testifying experts create a stronger and more indisputable work product.

Janae Long, founder of Long Paralegal Business Services, specializes in planning and execution of forensic investigations, trial preparation and trial presentation.

Ms. Long provides services to both attorneys and experts, including mediation preparation, presentations, legal research (both domestic and foreign), codes and standards research, preparation of court-ordered inventories, site investigation documentation and photography, and coordination of due diligence inspections. She has assisted numerous experts in preparation for testimony. In addition, she has testified at trial, arbitration, and depositions.

Ms. Long received paralegal certification from the University of San Diego, and is currently serving as a Board Member for the San Diego chapter of Forensic Expert Witness Association.

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Roxanne Brand

Disguised Writing – A Case Study

As document examiners, we can come across situations where an individual vehemently denies authorship of a signature and/or writing. Ultimately, it does not matter what those individuals say. What matters is our examination and analysis process of the signature in question and the sample of exemplars provided to arrive at the final answer. She will be reviewing a case involving a multilingual individual who used their knowledge of different alphabets to deny their signature on a contract.

Roxanne Brand is a Certified Questioned Document Examiner.  She has been called upon to render opinion in many types of cases that have included bank robbery notes, graffiti, and poison pen letters.  She uses an array of equipment to assist her in the examination and analysis processes.

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Heidi Harralson

Elderly Handwriting & Motor Disorders

Heidi Harralson is the managing partner of Spectrum Forensic International, LLC, a full-time handwriting and document examination practitioner. She is a court-qualified and board-certified forensic document examiner.

Ms. Harralson has lectured extensively to professional organizations and universities on handwriting sciences. She has published original research in peer-reviewed journals on forensic handwriting and document examination topics. Her publications include Huber & Headrick's Handwriting Identification: Facts and Fundamentals, Developments in Handwriting and Signature Identification in the Digital Age, and Forensic Handwriting Examination of Motor Disorders & Forgery.

She has been consulted by attorneys and public and private clients internationally. She is a board-certified document examiner and diplomate through the National Association of Document Examiners. She holds a Bachelor of Science in the behavioral sciences, a Master of Arts in handwriting science and forensic document examination, and a forensic crime scene technician certificate.  She is an affiliate professor at East Tennessee State University where she teaches forensic science courses.

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Spiwe L. Jefferson

Attorney at Law with Blackwell Burke, PA, Minneapolis, Minnesota

5 Things Experts Should Know

Spiwe L. Jefferson serves as trial counsel in state and federal courts nationwide, defending major corporations in commercial disputes, products liability, premises litigation, food safety, toxic tort, multi-district litigation, and class actions. Ms. Jefferson's experience includes managing cases from inception to resolution, retaining experts, and serving as first and second-chair trial counsel.

Ms. Jefferson is recognized by America's Top 100 High Stakes Litigators®, America's Top 100 Civil Defense Litigators®, The National Black Lawyers Top 100, and Diversity MBA Top 100 Under 50 Diverse Executive Leaders. She is Patron Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, Governance Committee Chair of The BrandLab, Communications Co-Chair for the National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF) and Minnesota Association of Black Lawyers (MABL).

When she is not zealously defending clients, Ms. Jefferson enjoys working out and authoring publications on mindfulness meditation.

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Sharon Rose Hampton, CQDE

Looking Past the Obvious — A Case Study

This case review has three documents from a couple allegedly signed with a construction company for a remodel for a bath in their home. While at first examination, the original signatures revealed habitual traits and natural variation only. That is until a more in-depth review of exemplars revealed a surprise!

Sharon Rose Hampton is a practicing document examiner serving primarily Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, and Michigan, along with some East Coast and West Coast cases. A larger and larger portion of her case work involves seeking justice for post-conviction cases and false prosecutions based upon questioned documents.

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Bryan Sydnor

InfraRed & Ultraviolet Lighting & Mi-Scope

Bryan Sydnor is a former Chief Engineer for The Boeing Company. Throughout his 18 years he was awarded 5 patents for his work in hydrokinetics and undersea vehicles. From 2006 through 2015 Bryan worked specifically as a Manufacturing Engineer and Chief Production Engineer focusing on UV/IR/radar sensors. While in the Sensors Division, he worked developing UV/IR/radar manufacturing lines and test capabilities for existing and new product lines.

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Doug Kiesewetter

A Successful Organization and Business

Founder and President, BrightLeaf Technologies. Mr. Kiesewetter is an extraordinarily successful businessman who has operated numerous businesses and sits on numerous boards.