Criminal Minds: Killer Handwriting

Murder – it’s one of the most chilling words in the English language. Have you ever wondered what the mind of a murderer looks like? Did you know you can learn about some behaviors of murderers like Jack the Ripper and Ted Kaczynski just by looking at their penmanship? Different characteristics in penmanship such as slant, size of letters, pressure, and more, may explain various personality traits. 

Handwriting expert Terry Antoniewicz  covers some of the most high-profile criminal cases using handwriting specimens of famed killers to show their behaviors with some stunning outcomes of the situations that may surprise history buffs.  Some of the cases discussed are Jack the Ripper, the American Jack the Ripper (was it the same person who crossed the pond?) Ted Kaczynski, Jeffrey Dahmer and Son of Sam. 

The audience will have the opportunity to see what psychological issues drove these individuals to commit some of the most heinous crimes and hear about the lingering mysteries that still exist.  

Terry’s career has spanned over 50 years with professional calligraphy, forensic handwriting and graphology (handwriting analysis). The NJ Star-Ledger requested Terry to verify the truthfulness of the apology letter written by Alex Rodriquez to his fans. Her work also includes forgery investigations. As a professional calligrapher, she has created documents for royalty, government, and churches around the world. Her interest in graphology started in the early ‘70s as she became more involved in updating and repairing historical documents.

This program is made possible with the support of The Friends of the Livingston Public Library.