SWGDOC
Definition
The Scientific Working Group for Forensic Document Examination (US), which publishes standards for typewriter examination, handwriting comparison, ink analysis, and related forensic document disciplines.
- Country
- United States
- Sponsor
- FBI
- Active period
- 1990s to 2017
- Successor
- OSAC (Organization of Scientific Area Committees)
Common questions
What was SWGDOC and why did it matter in document examination?+
SWGDOC was the Scientific Working Group for Forensic Document Examination, an FBI-sponsored consensus standards body in the United States. From the 1990s through 2017, it published the practice standards that accredited US laboratories used for questioned document examination work, including typewriter analysis, handwriting comparison, and ink examination.
Is SWGDOC still active?+
No. SWGDOC dissolved in 2017 when OSAC (the Organization of Scientific Area Committees) assumed its standards-making function. If you're looking for current US forensic document standards, OSAC is where they live now.
What kinds of document examination standards did SWGDOC produce?+
SWGDOC published standards covering questioned document methodology across multiple disciplines. These included procedures for typewriter examination, handwriting comparison, ink analysis, and methods for detecting and analyzing mechanical and chemical erasures, obliterations, and interlineations.
Related terms
- ENFSI EDEWG
- European Network of Forensic Science Institutes, European Document Examiners Working Group: the EU-level body coordinating document examination standards, proficiency tests, and the...
- PCAST 2016
- President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology 2016 report 'Forensic Science in Criminal Courts', which assessed foundational validity of forensic disciplines...
- ABFDE
- American Board of Forensic Document Examiners: the US professional certification body whose diplomate examination is the recognised US standard for examiner competence...
- ACE-V
- Analysis, Comparison, Evaluation, Verification: the four-stage method for latent print examination used by accredited forensic fingerprint laboratories. Analysis examines the latent in...
- ASTM E30
- The ASTM International Committee on Forensic Sciences, which maintains standards including E2388 (minimum training requirements for document examiners) and E2520 (examination of...
- Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023 (BSA)
- India's current evidence statute, which replaced the Indian Evidence Act 1872. Section 63 of the BSA governs electronic records and requires a...
- Carbon-Film Ribbon
- A single-strike typewriter ribbon with a carbon coating that transfers completely to paper on impact, enabling high-quality impressions; the used ribbon retains...
- CFSL
- Central Forensic Science Laboratory: a central government lab operating under DFSS. India has CFSLs at New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Pune, Guwahati,...
- Chemical Erasure
- Destruction of an ink's chromophore by oxidising or reducing agents (bleach, permanganate, borohydride) without physically removing paper fibres, leaving altered UV fluorescence...
- Chromophore
- The molecular subunit responsible for a dye's colour, typically a conjugated double-bond system; chemical erasure destroys the chromophore while leaving the decolourised...
- Class Characteristic
- A feature shared by an entire group of objects (every shoe of one model has the same sole tread; every tire of...
- CPR Part 19
- Criminal Procedure Rules Part 19 (England and Wales): the procedural framework governing expert evidence in criminal proceedings, requiring disclosure of methodology, range...
Explained in these topics
- Introduction and Scope of Questioned Document ExaminationScientific Working Group for Forensic Document Examination: the FBI-sponsored body that produced US practice standards for QDE from the 1990s through 2017, whe...
- Mechanical and Chemical Erasures, Obliterations and InterlineationsScientific Working Group for Forensic Document Examination (United States); publishes standards for questioned-document examination methodology adopted across...
- Standards, Accreditation and Admissibility in QDEScientific Working Group for Forensic Document Examination: the FBI-sponsored consensus standards body for US document examination, dissolved in 2017 when OSAC...
- Typewriter Examination: Mechanical, Electric and ElectronicThe Scientific Working Group for Forensic Document Examination (US), which publishes standards for typewriter examination, handwriting comparison, ink analysis...