![[Foster's note]](fosterq1.gif)
Click for full size picture.(18K)
This is the full page of the so-called suicide note, minus the one
torn section wjhere a signiture or initials would have gone. Note the rather
contrived nature of the ters surrounding the missing portion.
I made mistakes from ignorance, inexperience and overwork
I did not knowingly violate any law or standard of conduct
No one in The White House, to my knowledge, violated any law or
standard of conduct, including any action in the travel office.
There was no intent to benefit any individual or specific group
The FBI lied in their report to the AG
The press is covering up the illegal benefits they received from
the travel staff
The GOP has lied and misrepresented its knowledge and role and
covered up a prior investigation
The Ushers Office plotted to have excessive costs incurred, taking
advantage of Kaki and HRC
The public will never believe the innocence of the Clintons and
their loyal staff
The WSJ editors lie without consequence
I was not meant for the job or the spotlight of public life in
Washington. Here ruining people is considered sport
An Independent Forensic Examination
Of a Torn Note Allegedly
Written by Vincent W. Foster, Jr.
Prepared for Strategic Investment
James Dale Davidson, Editor
25 October 1995
Page 1 Statement of James Dale Davidson
Page 3 Biography of Vincent J. Scalice
Page 4 Biography of R.E. Alton
Page 5 Biography of Ronald H. Rice
Page 18 Transcript of Torn Note
Page 19 Photocopy of Torn Note(Q1)
Page 20 Photocopy of Park Police examplar(K1)
Page 23 Photocopy of notes written by Foster relating to the Whitewater partnership(K3-12)
October 25, 1995
For More Info Contact: Anne Dunne 410-576-0900
EXPERTS SAY FOSTER "SUICIDE" NOTE IS A FORGERY
At a press conference this morning at Washington's Willard Hotel, James Dale Davidson announced the findings of an international panel of forensic panel (sic) who examined a copy of a note that was found in Foster's briefcase shortly after his death.
The panel of three forensic handwriting experts have determined that the note is a forgery, and not written by the late Deputy White House Counsel.
James Dale Davidson, Editor of Strategic Investment, a premier world financial newsletter, offered the following statement today:
Ladies and Gentlemen, Strategic Investment has asked a forensic panel of handwriting experts to examine the so-called "suicide" note, said to have been written by the late Vincent Foster.
The panel's conclusions were collected over a three month period. Each panelist worked independently and came to their own conclusions without interference.
They completed their study with far greater care, thoroughness, and apparent accuracy than the federal institutions that were intended to protect us. It is indeed ironic, that Vincent Foster, as the number two lawyer in the White House and one of the highest ranking law enforcement officials in this land--would have his own death covered up.
The fabrication of a "suicide" note by high officials, is just one more indication that Vincent Foster did not commit suicide.
With us today are our expert panel whose reports you have copies of, as well as the torn note, and a set of known documents written by Vincent Foster.
Mr. Reginald E. Alton, from Oxford Univeristy, has flown in for this conference. He is a world-recognized expert on handwriting and manuscript authentication. For 30 years he has lectured at Oxford on handwriting, and has engaged in forensic document examination.
Recently he ruled on the authenticity of C.S. Lewis's Diaries. He has been consulted by British police authorities and has testified in British courts on both criminal and civil matters involving questioned documents.
He has determined the note to be a forgery.
Mr. Vincent Scalice, is formerly a homicide expert with the New York City Police Department. He is a certified Questioned Document Examiner with the American Board of Forensic Examiners. He has 22 years experience as a document examiner, and has worked for some of the countryıs largest institutions in this capacity, for example Citicorp and Chemical Bank.
He has determined the note to be a forgery.
Mr. Ronald Rice has 18 years experience performing civil, criminal and forensic handwriting examination. He is a consultant to the Massachusetts Attorney General's office. He has examined documents on a number of celebrated cases, and recently was asked by CNN to examine notes written by O.J. Simpson.
He too has determined the note to be a forgery.
Three experts--70 years of combined forensic examination experience--conclude forgery.
Both the Park Police and later the FBI determined the note to have been written by Mr. Foster.
But look more closely. The Capitol Police handwriting expert compared the so-called Foster note to only one document--which is not in keeping with a proper and complete examination. We learn today from Mr. Christopher Ruddy, the reporter from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the the Park Police used the services of [a] Sergeant from the Capitol Police who has never been certified as a document examiner.
Later the FBI, and former Special Counsel Robert Fiske reports, found the note to have been written by Foster, again by comparing it to a single document and several checks written by Foster. Like so much of the duplicity in the Fiske report, we learn that the checks proved an inconclusive match to the note. The FBI violated standard forensic procedures to match the document.
Former FBI Director William Sessions has charged that his firing the day before Foster's death led to a "compromised" investigation into the death. Political considerations have guided Foster's death investigation from the beginning. Allegedly, in America, no one is above the law. But the investigations, by the Park Police, Fiske, and the Beltway insider Kenneth Starr, show that the law applies differently to different people.
We at Strategic Investment believe that the evidence in this case overwhelmingly points to murder. It is a threat to the credibility of America's justice system that possible obstruction of justice by the Park Police and the FBI is whitewashed.
The following is the resumes of the three experts that determined that the Vince Foster suicide note was a forgery.
Vincent J. Scalice is a certified Questioned Document Examiner with the American Board of Forensic Examiners. Mr. Scalice began studying handwriting analysis over forty years ago, and for the past 22 years has engaged in forensic document examination as a specility. He has testified in hundreds of court cases on civil and criminal matters (please note this too..) pertaining to questioned documents. He has conducted forensic document examination for some of the nation's largest commerical banks, including Citibank and Chemical Bank.
In 1977, Mr. Scalice retired from the New York City Police Department after 21 years of service as a detective first grade with specialties in Identification, Latent Fingerprint Analysis and Crime Scene reconstruction. Since his retirement he has been Executive Director of Forensic Control Systems of Staten Island, New York. He has served as a Consultant to the House Committee on Assassinations which investigated the deaths of President John Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He currently serves as chairman of the Executive Board of Scientific and technical Advisors for the American Board of Forensic Examiners.
Reginald E. Alton is a world-reconized expert on handwriting examination and manuscript authentication. He has 30 years experience in the field of forensic document examiniation, and has lectured during this period at Oxford University on handwriting and manuscripts, including the detection of forgery and the identification of handwriting to Doctoral and research students in the University of Oxford. In recent years he ruled on charges that some of the manuscripts of the late C.S. Lewis were a forgery. He validated their authenticity. He has ruled on numerous questioned documents and manuscripts, including such noteworthy historical figures as Donne, Shelley, Christina Rossetti, to modern day authors as Oscar Wilde. He has been consulted by civil bodies and by British police authorities and has testified as an expert witness in British courts on criminal matters relating to questioned documents, and has been consulted on anonyous letters and other forgeries.
Mr. Alton, M.C., M.A., is an Emeritus Fellow of St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford, and is currently Dean of Degrees at St Edmund Hall, Oxford's oldest institution for undergraduates. He was Fellow, Tutor and Vice-Principal of St. Edmund Hall and has served as Chairman of the English faculty, as well as lecturer at Pembroke, Jesus and Exeter Colleges in the Univesity of Oxford.
Ronald H. Rice has 18 years experience performing civil, criminal and forensic handwriting examination. He is a Board Certified Handwriting Examiner and Board Certified Forensic Examiner with the American Board of Forensic Examiners, and a member of the National Association of Document Examiners. He has consulted on numerous civil and criminal cases relating to questioned documents, and has testified in state and federal courts. He is currently under contract with the criminal division of the Massachusetts Attorney General's office. He has examined documents in a number of celebrated cases including handwritten documents by Ted Bundy, the alleged Boston Strangler, Lizzie Borden and recently, documents written/printed by O.J. Simpson for CNN (please note that last one). He has been asked to examine documents for the commanding officer of a U.S. Army Military Police Company in West Germany while on reserve training as well as for the United States Navy Investigative Services while a reserve member of Navel Intelligence, attached to Navel Investigative Services. He also serves as a document consulatant for numerous corporations, major law firms and insurance companies in matters relating to questioned documents.
Mr. Rice is the owner of Checkmate, Inc., D.B.A. New England Legal Investigations, based in Boston, Massachusetts. He has been a private investigator for 13 years and a licensed detective for 20 years. He is the published author of the most comprehensive handwriting examination training course currently available through the American Board of Forensic Examiners and trains people in handwriting examination thoughout the country.
September 6, 1995
Case# 2043
Mr. James D. Davidson
Strategic Investment
Re: Handwriting Examination & Comparison of
Vincent W. Foster Jr.
Dear Mr. Davidson:
As previously stated, there are numerous marked differences
in regard to execution of stroke and invidual letter formations
between the Questioned (Q1) note and the known standards
(K1 - K10). A random list of some of the more obvious
differences is as follows:
1. "Th" formations:
There are numerous "Th" letter formations, eighteen
(18) in all present in the Questioned note (Q1) which
are markedly different from the "Th" formations in
the known samples examined. These "Th" letter formations
appear in the following words in the Questioned note:
"The"
"Their"
"They"
"Without"
2. Word "To" appearing in Questioned, (Q1) differs in
execution with To's in Known standards.
3. Marked diffences in all Printed capital letter formations
between Questioned & Known.
See:
A; B; F; G; I; J; N; S; T; U; V & W.
4. Discrepancies in Handwritten capital latter betwen
Questioned and Known appear in regard to following:
C's H's I's & U's
5. Handwritten small (lower case) letter formations are
numerous. Differences are noted in regard to almost
all of the individual letter formations throughout.
6. Differences in regard to Handwritten Words include:
"did"
"for"
"not"
"the"
"to"
"Clintons", etc.
Please note the forgoing illustrations exhibit only
a random sampling of the inconsistences notes througout
the Questioned and Known writings examined. It should not
be considered all inclusive.
Should you require graphic exhibits or charts to further
illustrate the inconsistences notes, please provide at
least two (2) weeks advance notice to allow sufficient time
for preparaton.
Respectfully submitted,
Vincent J. Scalice
Forensic Consultant
Document Examiner
October 6, 1995
James D. Davidson
Strategic Investment
Dear Mr. Davidson:
At your request I have examined a photocopy of the Questioned
Document said to be written by Vincent W. Foster, Jr., with
several photocopied exemplars identified as the known writing
of Vincent Foster.
Q-1 begins as follows: "I made mistakes from ignorance,
inexperience and overwork..."
Q-1 was examined and compared with several photocopied
examplars.
K-1 is a note written by Vincent Foster on June 18, 1993,
and is used as the sole examplar by the U.S. Park Police
to certify Q-1 as genuine.
K-2 is a note written by Vincent Foster on his stationary
and dated April 15, 1993. The note is signed.
K-3 is a single page document containing notes made by
Vincent Foster and found in the U.S. Park Police
report.
K-4 are documents written by Vincent Foster relating to
thru the Whitewater partnership and presented to the Senate's
K-10 Special Whitewater committee.
K-11 are various notes and documents containing the sign-
thru ature of Vincent Foster and found in the U.S. Park
k-14 Police report.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this examination and comparison was to determine
whether or not the document in question was actually written
by Vincent Foster, Jr.
RESULTS
As a result of comprehensive and thorough analysis of the
Questioned and Known photocopied documents undery varying
degrees of magnification, I have arrived at the following
determinations:
1. Although some generalized degree of similarity exists
between the photocopied questioned document with the
known samples furnished, upon closer detailed examin-
ation and comparison numerous marked differences have
been noted throughout the writtings.
2. Most of the execution, form and style of the writing
contained in Q-1 is not consitent with the writings
found in K-1 thru K-14. There are numerous inconsis-
tencies found througout Q-1 in regard to individual
letter formation. Marked differences are noted in
execution of stroke and the beginning of letter forma-
tions. The document, Q-1, exhibits a style less conti-
nous and flowing than the writing contained in the known
documents.
3. Based upon the above observation and comparisions of
the photocopied documents I have formed the opinion
that it is not posssible to state that the questioned
document was written by Vincent Foster. The document
appears to be a simulation of Foster's writing result-
ing in an unsuccessful attempt to produce a credible
forgery.
ADDITIONAL FINDINGS
1. Q-1 is not consistent with a suicide note. It makes
no mention of intentional harm to oneself. There is
no signature and no date. Significantly, there is no
mention of characteristic statements of departure for
loved ones, the putting of affairs in order, or a motive
for suicide. THe writer of Q-1 does not give any indication
of clinical depression or apparent suicidal tendencies.
2. It is highly doubtful that the missing piece from
Q-1 would have contained his signature.
3. Q-1, had it been torn by decedent into 28 pieces,
should certainly have left numerous latent print
impressions.
4. The use of only K-1 by the U.S. Park Police is not
consistent with standard forensic document examination.
Police should have obtained independent, additional
samples of Vincent Foster's handwritting executed during
the normal course of business and from other sources.
Normally, in the course of a homicide investigation,
it would be improper for police to accept a single
document from a family member, and to form an opinion
based on same.
5. The use of a single document and a series of checks
alleged to have been written by Vincent Foster by
The FBI's Questioned Document section is not consistent
with standard forensic document examination.
6. Official reports omit any examination by the FBI of
a psycholinguistic analysis of Q-1 compared with the
known writing of decedent. This omission is serious
considering the disjointed statements found in Q-1.
7. The long amount of time before Q-1 was found, and the
unusual circumstances of its discovery, should have
aroused suspicion that the time may have been
used to execute the fraudulent note. Also, the
findng of the note in 28 pieces, one piece missing,
may indicate an effort was made to further hinder a
comparative analysis.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
The finding that Q-1 appears to be a forgery, coupled with
the additional findings one through seven, are all supporting
evidence that a proper homicide investigation is required
into the death of Vincent Foster.
Should you require additional documentation in the form
of grapic exhibits or charts to illustrate the basis for
these findings, please notify this office in advance and
allow time for preparation.
Respectfully submitted,
Vincent J. Scalice
Forensic Consultant
Document Examiner
Telephone: Oxford (01865) 279000
Direct Dial: Oxford (01865) 2790 ...
Fax: Oxford (01865) 279090
Report and opinion by Reginald Ernest Alton
1. I have examined photocopies of documents, each consisting of
one leaf and foliation l.r., in a different hand from the main body
of the document, Q1 and K1 to K12 inclusive. I am satisfied that
K1 to K12 inclusive are, apart from foliation and printed or stamped
material, all the work of one person who signed K1 and K2. The
hand of K1 to K12 inclusive is that of a mature adult and the date
of the questioned document Q1 is close enough to the dates of the K
group for the latter to be used to determine the authenticity
or otherwise of Q1.
2. In my opinion, insofar as it is possible to come to a conclusion
from photocopies, Q1 is a forgery related to K1 to K12 inclusive
because the forger was using parts of them as a model.
3. The difficulties of this comparative study have been much increased
by the fact that Q1 has been torn and apparently crudely and
inofficiently repaired. This process, whether deliberate or not,
has obscured some of the continuities or discontinuities of the
handwriting, and especially the lineation and layout which often,
in their uncertainties, betray a forger's eye as it wanders from
forgery to model.
4. I have had in mind three axioms:
(a) any letter form or ligature used by writers of a language
at a given date is available for selection by any writer.
Accordingly, the movements of the pen as it makes the letter and
the general appearance of a document are of more importance
then the presense or absence or even the frequency of
individual letter forms;
(b) slope, proportion (x - height: space: ascenders and
descenders), degree of horizontal or vertical compression,
roundness or angularity, pressure, characteristic movements
of the hand, and the writing instrument itself all contribute
to the general appearance;
(c) writers of modern cursive hands can be divided into
'swaggers' and 'archers'
5. Foster seems to have been a natural 'swagger'. He makes a
serioes of ninisms e.g. nin (returning K1 1.1), in and w with
an even and rhythmic movement through a series of elegant
swags. He rarely writes n or h with an arch.
The writer of Q1 is aware of this habit but he fails to match
Foster's usage or elegance. The incidence of arched n in the
first eight lines of Q1 is much higher then in the control
documents. It is chracterisitc of a forger that the writer
of Q1 gets better at imitating this habit as he or she goes
along.
6. The uneven, uneasy and laboured nature of Q1's swags for in
can be seen in inexperience (1.1), individual (1.8) and in
Clintons (1.17) as compared with what should be an exact
match, Clinton's in K9 (1.2).
7. Even more revealing is anouther case which ought to produce
an exact match and in Q1 fails to do so; the word benefit, Q1
(1.8 and 1.10) as compared with K11 (1.1) and K10 (1.4).
Foster makes initial minuscule b in one stroke (see also
based, K10 (1.5)). Q1 takes at least 2, possible 3 strokes
to reproduce the shape. In my opinion he is copying K10 for
this word but has failed to understand the movements of
Foster's pen.
8. In a movement of the hand which is directionally the same as
the swags Foster is a habitual writer of counter-clockwise
loops or circles. This characteristic is visible in most
appearances of the th ligature througout K1 to K12 inclusive.
In Q1 the loops in this ligature either do not exist or are a
mere thickening of the ascender of h.
9. We see this movement not only in expected places e.g. round-backed
looped d (see K1 and K2 and contrast did, lied etc in Q1), but
also in unexpected places e.g. a in avoids and answering (K7).
In Q1 minuscule a is an awkward 2 stroke letter; in K7 a
counter-clockwise loop closes the bowl in one stroke.
10. The writer of Q1 is generally uneasy about joining one ltter to
the next e.g. o to l to a in violate (1.3) and especially l to a
in the same word (1.6). Contrast c to l to o in enclosed (K1 1.5
and 1.7). This sort of failure is characteristic of forgeries.
11. There is much other detail which could be mentioned e.g. the
of ligatures, Q1's failure to understand Foster's majuscule
B (K3) and majuscule I and J.
12. In general appearance the hand of the authentic documents K1 to
K12 is firm, open, rounded, with a consistent slight backward
slope and an easy currency that joins letter to letter with
scarcely an interruption to the flow of the hand. This is
true whatever the different circumstances in which the K group
were written down.
In contract the hand of Q1 is slightly but clearly less open
(slightly more horizontally compressed); it has an inconsistent
slope which, though often ackward in varying degrees, gives in
total a more upright appearance than K1 to K12 inclusive; and
though it imitates letters and words from the K group it fails
to fails to undestand how they are made.
R E Alton
18 September 1995
New England Legal Investigations
Certified Handwriting and Document Experts
752 Washington Street *Brewster Building
PEMBROKE, MA 02359 *TEL: 617-826-3293
FAX: (24 HOURS A DAY) 617-826-9583
Vincent J. Scalice August 30, 1995
Forensic Control Systems
107 Cedarview Avenue
Staten Island, New York 10306
HANDWRITING EXAMINER'S REPORT
PART I - DOCUMENTS EXAMINED
The undersigned Board Certified Handwriting Examiner has examined and
studied the following listed documents which you submitted for compar-
ison purposes. For the purpose of identification, these documents are
listed and referred to as Exhibits K1, K2, K3, K4, K5, K6, K7, K8, K9,
K10, Q1.
K1. One (1) photocopy of a letter head bearing two lines
of professional printing, top center: VINCENT W. FOSTER
WASHINGTON, D.C. Document bears fifteen (15) lines of
handwritten/handprinted words, letters, numerals, and mark-
ings by a minimum of two different people. Lines 1-14 are
identified as having been executed by Mr. Foster. First two
lines read: erican Exploration Co - I am returning your
check no. 04820598
K2. One (1) photocopy of a letter head bearing one line of
printing, top center: VINCENT FOSTER JR. Document bears
fourteen (14) lines of handprinted/handwritten words, let-
ters and numerals by two different people. Lines 1-13 are
identified as having been executed by Mr. Foster. Lines 11-
13 read: decision Vince not for Publication
K3. One (1) photocopy of four columns of handprinted/handwritten
numerals, letters and words by two different people. All
printed/writings with the exception of the circled K-3 have
been identified as being executed by Mr. Foster. First col-
umn reads: 1/80 2/80 3/80 12/83
K4. One (1) photocopy of a paper bearing twenty (20) lines
of handwritten/handprinted words, letters, numerals and
markings by two different people. With the exception of the
circled K-4, all writings/printings have been identified
as being executed by Mr. Foster.
K5. One (1) photocopy of a paper bearing fourteen (14) lines
of handwritten/handprinted words, letters, numerals and
markings by two different people. With the exception of the
circled K-5, all writings/printings have been identified as
being executed by Mr. Foster. First line reads: Whitewater
Thirteenth line reads: Q- Who sign
K6. One (1) photocopy of a lined paper bearing twenty-one (21)
lines of handwritten/handprinted words, letters, numerals
and markings by two different people. With the exception of
the circled K-6, all writings/printings have been identified
as being executed by Mr. Foster. Last line reads: but it is
shaky
K7. One (1) photocopy of a lined paper bearing fourteen lines
of handprinted/handwritten words, letters, numerals and
markings by two different people. With the exception of
the circled K-7, all writings/printings have been identified
as being executed by Mr. Foster. Second line reads: 10
options
K8. One (1) photocopy of a lined paper bearing seven (7) lines
of handwritten/handprinted words, letters and numerals by
two different people. With the exception of the circled
K-8, all writings/printings have been identified as having
been executed by Mr. Foster. Last line reads: There are
no canceled cks.
K9. One (1) photocopy of a lined paper bearing fourteen (14)
lines of handwritten/handprinted words, letters, numerals
and markings by two different people. With the exception
of the circled K-9, all writings/printings were executed
by Mr. Foster. Last line reads: VS IRS audit
K10. One (1) photocpy of a lined paper bearing nine (9) lines
of handwritten/handprinted words, letters and numerals by
two different people. With the exception of the circled
K-10, all writing was executed by Mr. Foster. Last line
reads defensible in audit
Q1. One (1) photocopy of a Wall Street Journal article bearing
a note with the captions: The Note That Won't Go Away The
note was found in Vincent Foster's briefcase following his
death and contains twenty-one (21) lines of handwritten/
handprinted words and letters. First two lines read: I
made mistakes from ignorance, inexperience and overwork
PART II - OPINION
Using the handwriting/handprinting in Exhibits K1-K10 as the standards
and as the basis for comparison, it is the opinion of the Examiner,
within a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, that:
A. The handwriting/handprinting on the questioned document,
Exhibit Q1 was not written/printed by the Vincent W. Foster
represented by the standards in Exhibits K1-K10.
B. There are sufficient factors of dissimilarity in the hand-
writing/handprinting on the questioned document, Exhibit
Q1, and the standards, Exhibits K1-K10, to indicate they
were written/printed by two different people.
PART III - BASIS FOR OPINION
This opinion is based on the following Pattern Recognition Factors:
Re: Part II, A.
---------------
The style, slant and flow of the writings/printings in the
questioned document and the Vincent W. Foster Standards are
not the same. Further, the individual letter stroke charac-
teristics, personal writing/printing habits and idiosyncrasies,
found in the Foster exemplars, are not present in the questioned
writing/printing.
These totally different factors, found in the questioned writ-
tings, reflect the writing/printing habits of an individual other
than the Vincent W. Foster represented by the exemplars in Exhib-
its 1-10.
Re: Part II. B.
---------------
There are definitive factors of letter stroke charactaristics
(personal writing/printing habits and idiosyncrasies) that are
present in the cited standards but missing in the questioned
writing/printing. These are specifically noted as, but not
limited to, the following:
1. The handprinted capital A's, B's, C's, F's, G's, H's, I's,
J's, N's, S's, T's, U's, V's, W's.
2. The handwritten captial C's.
3. The handwritten lower case a's, b's, c's, d's, e's, f's, g's,
h's, i's, k's, l's, m's, n's, o's, p's, r's, s's, t's u's,
v's, w's, y's.
These factors, found in the questioned writing/printing and the cited
standards, reflect the unconscious writing/printing habits of two com-
pletely different people and establish the opinion cited in Part II,
B.
Sincerely,
Ronald H. Rice
Licensed Investigator
Board Certified Handwriting Examiner
Board Certified Forensic Examiner (BCFE) *
RHR/mm
* BCFE designation has been granted national registration
by the National Cerification Commission
I made mistakes from ignorance, inexperience and overwork
I did not knowingly violate any law or standard of conduct
No one in the White House, to my knowledge, violated any law or standard of conduct, including any action in the travel office. There was no intent to benefit any individual or specific group (note: This is now known to be a lie, something writers of suicide notes tend NOT to do).
The FBI lied in their report to the AG
The press is covering up the illegal benefits they received from the travel staff
The GOP has lied and misrepresented its knowledge and role and covered up a prior investigation
The Ushers Office plotted to have excessive costs incurred, taking advantage of Kaki and HRC
The public will never believe the innocense of the Clintons and their loyal staff
The WSJ editors lie without consequence
I was not meant for the job or the spotlight of public life in Washington. Here ruining people is considered sport.
Click for full size picture.(18K)
This is the full page of the so-called suicide note, minus the one
torn section wjhere a signiture or initials would have gone. Note the rather
contrived nature of the ters surrounding the missing portion.
![[Foster's note]](fosterq1v1.gif)
Click for full size picture.(15K)
This is a scan of the actual writing on the note.
![[Park POlice Example]](fosterk1.gif)
Click for full size picture.(7K)
This is the single sample the Park Police used to claim that the suicide
note was written by Foster.
![[Foster April 93 memo]](fosterk2.gif)
Click for full size picture.(4K)
Actual note known to be in Foster's writing. Note severe redactions.
![[Foster Whitewater Note K3]](fosterk3.gif)
Click for full size picture.(5K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K4]](fosterk4.gif)
Click for full size picture.(13K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K5]](fosterk5.gif)
Click for full size picture.(6K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K6]](fosterk6.gif)
Click for full size picture.(12K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K7]](fosterk7.gif)
Click for full size picture.(8K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K8]](fosterk8.gif)
Click for full size picture.(6K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K9]](fosterk9.gif)
Click for full size picture.(8K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K10]](fosterk10.gif)
Click for full size picture.(7K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K11]](fosterk11.gif)
Click for full size picture.(3K)
![[Foster Whitewater Note K12]](fosterk12.gif)
Click for full size picture.(7K)
![[London Times Article]](Fos.gif)
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Three handwriting specialists presented analysis at a news conference of the note found in Foster's briefcase after the deputy White House counsel was found dead July 20, 1993 in a federal park near Washington. They said it appeared the note was not written by him but was a forgery. U.S. Park Police and former independent counsel Robert Fiske had concluded that Foster had committed suicide and that he had written the note but his death has given rise to some conspiratorial theories that Foster was murdered. The organizer of the news conference, James Davidson, an editor of a financial investment news letter, "Strategic Investment" said he commissioned the handwriting analysis and he concluded that "the evidence in this case overwhelmingly points to murder." The handwriting specialists, former New York police department homicide expert Vincent Scalice, Oxford University manuscript expert Reginald Alton, and Boston provate investigator Ronald Rice, said comparisons with a letter Foster had written had enough differences in style and letters to conclude the suicide note was not written by Foster .
WASHINGTON (Reuter) - Someone forged the torn-up suicide note that
was discovered after White House lawyer Vincent Foster was found with a fatal
gunshot wound in the head, a group of handwriting experts said Wednesday.
Three handwriting specialists presented analysis at a news conference
of the note found in Foster's briefcase after the deputy White House counsel
was found dead July 20, 1993 in a federal park near Washington. They said it
appeared the note was not written by him but was ``a forgery.
U.S. Park Police and former independent counsel Robert Fiske had
concluded that Foster had committed suicide and that he had written the
note but his death has given rise to some conspiratorial theories that Foster
was murdered.
The note, said written days or weeks before Foster died, was not a
classic suicide note in the sense of saying goodbye to the world. Instead,
the note complained of life in Washington and concluded ``I was not meant
for the job or the spotlight of public life in Washington. Here ruining
people is considered sport.''
The organizer of the news conference, James Davidson, an editor of a
financial investment news letter, ``Strategic Investment,'' said he
commissioned the handwriting analysis and he concluded that ``the evidence
in
this case overwhelmingly points to murder.'' He said he asked for the
analysis because his newsletter has ``an investigatory bent.''
The handwriting specialists provided no information as to who they
thought might have written the note or why.
Reut14:40 10-25-95
Panel Eyes W'water Subpoenas WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate Whitewater Committee plans to call Hillary Rodham Clinton's chief of staff and a longtime friend for further questioning about White House restrictions that kept police from searching Vincent Foster's office. After a hearing Wednesday, committee chairman Alfonse D'Amato, R-N.Y., said the panel might consider calling Mrs. Clinton to testify, depending on what witnesses Margaret Williams and Susan Thomases say. With a stack of recently obtained telephone records in hand, D'Amato threatened to issue sweeping subpoenas for more documents and he accused the Clinton White House of withholding material that was requested months ago. A longtime friend of Mrs. Clinton, Ms. Thomases told the committee last summer that she didn't speak to Mrs. Clinton about the planned police search of Foster's office, but D'Amato said Mrs. Thomases statements are "at least suspect" in light of the phone records. Ms. Thomases "has failed to answer in a responsive manner," D'Amato told reporters. White House spokesman Mark Fabiani accused D'Amato of "misrepresenting the facts" and said "the senators' political side show was made possible because we voluntarily provided the records." "The senator is seeking the last refuge for a political witch-hunter," Fabiani added. "He is complaining about technicalities and procedures." Committee Democrats objected to the far-reaching subpoenas proposed by D'Amato and committee lawyers were negotiating a compromise to narrow their scope. The committee's ranking Democrat, Paul Sarbanes of Maryland, said he was "very disappointed" that Republicans had initiated the subpoena plan without consulting the rest of the committee. The telephone records show that hours before Foster's office was to be searched, Mrs. Clinton spoke with Ms. Thomases and her chief of staff, Ms. Williams, before talking to White House counsel Bernard Nussbaum. Nussbaum then told law enforcement officials they would not be allowed to review Foster's documents. Mrs. Clinton calls on Ms. Thomases, an attorney, for advice from time to time. The two women have known each other for decades. The phone records also show three calls by Ms. Thomases to Ms. Williams' office two hours before the search of Foster's office the afternoon of July 22, 1993, two days after the deputy White House counsel's suicide. And minutes before the search began, Ms. Williams called Mrs. Clinton. Foster had custody of some financial records of the Clintons and a file on the White House travel office controversy -- the mass firings that raised a furor and embarrassed the administration. Separately, the committee's majority counsel, Michael Chertoff, disclosed that the Treasury Department has shredded some records relating to Whitewater contacts between the White House and Treasury officials. Chertoff said the Treasury inspector general's office reported that the shredded documents were only duplicates, but he said the action nonetheless concerned the committee. As the hearing ended, D'Amato said that there may be an innocent explanation for the shredding but that issuing subpoenas would safeguard against such action in the future. Meanwhile, a forensic panel of three handwriting experts contended that the torn-up note found in the bottom of Foster's briefcase six days after his death is a forgery. The finding conflicts with two previous investigations concluding that Foster wrote the note. The three experts who say Foster didn't write the note are Reginald E. Alton of Oxford University; Vincent Scalice, formerly a homicide expert with the New York City Police Department; and Ronald Rice, a consultant to the Massachusetts attorney general's office. The three conducted the work for Strategic Investment, a financial newsletter. In an interview, Alton said he compared the torn-up note with a number of pages of notes in Foster's hand turned up during Whitewater and that "it's a shaky enough forgery. It seems to me that the forger is reproducing shapes without understanding how they were made and how Foster's hand works."
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The Electronic Telegraph Thursday 26 October 1995
Vince Foster suicide note forged, say experts
BY STEPHEN ROBINSON
THE mystery surrounding the 1993 death of Vincent Foster, a senior
White House official, deepened yesterday when three handwriting
experts, one of them an Oxford don, ruled that his alleged suicide
note was a forgery.
Reginald Alton, emeritus fellow of St Edmund Hall, Oxford, who flew to
Washington to announce the results of his inquiry, said it was clear
the torn-up note recovered from a briefcase in Mr Foster's office
could not have been written by him.
The note listed Mr Foster's grievances in his life in Washington, and
its contents were taken as evidence that he was suicidal at the time
of his death.
Written on a yellow legal pad and torn into many pieces, the note has
long been a riddle within the wider mystery surrounding Mr Foster's
death.
His body was recovered at a secluded piece of parkland outside
Washington, a pistol in his hand and a bullet wound to the head. No
one heard a shot or saw Mr Foster arrive. The note was not recovered
during the first search of Mr Foster's office, but was found six days
after his death by Bernard Nussbaum, a White House legal counsel and a
friend of President and Mrs Clinton.
Forger was unable to recreate Mr Foster's confident counter-clockwise loops
or circles
During Whitewater hearings last summer, senators expressed bafflement
that the note could have been overlooked, and some suggested White
House staff were deliberately obstructing investigators on behalf of
Mr and Mrs Clinton.
In the note, the writer purporting to be Mr Foster regrets mistakes he
made, complains of hostile coverage of his office in the Wall Street
Journal, and concludes: "I was not meant for the job or the spotlight
of public life in Washington. Here ruining people is considered
sport."
Mr Alton introduced himself with a donnish self-effacement at
yesterday's press conference in Washington, and advised reporters not
to "mistake me for another interfering Brit" out to paint America in
unflattering light.
The conference was organised by Strategic Investment, which has taken
an interest in the Foster case and paid the experts.
Ronald Rice, who has 18 years' experience in forensic and handwriting
work, came to the same conclusions as Mr Alton. Vincent Scalice, a
retired New York detective with extensive forensic experience,
concurred.
The comparison was made between the note and 12 samples of Mr Foster's
handwriting. Mr Alton confirmed that all 12 samples had been written
by Mr Foster, but that the other note could not have been written by
him.
The formation of the letters was different. For instance, Mr Foster
wrote the letter b with a single stroke, while the forger used three
separate strokes. The forger was unable to recreate Mr Foster's
confident counter-clockwise loops or circles.
Reply to Electronic Telegraph - [15]et@telegraph.co.uk
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"Don't believe a word you hear. It was not suicide. It couldn't have been." -Assistant Attorney General Webster Hubbell, 7/20/93, cited in Esquire, 11/93.
