2025 NADE & AFDE  SYMPOSIUM

         "Examining Paper Documents in a Digital World"    

  Kansas City, Missouri  

    Friday, October 3 - Sunday, October 5, 2025

                

  Famous for barbecue, fountains, and the architecturally stunning historic Country Club Plaza marketplace, downtown Kansas City offers a plethora of activities. Popular destinations, Arrowhead Stadium and Kansas City Zoo, are also close to the hotel. The hotel is 30 minutes from Kansas City International Airport (MCI). 

     Hotel room rates are $169.00 plus taxes per night (single or double), and include a free parking and internet. The hotel room rates apply three days before and three days after the symposium. For information on how to reserve a room, click here.  Room reservation is online at this link. 

PROGRAM - 2025 Symposium

Titles and abstracts are being reviewed by the program committee at this time and are being posted as they are approved.  Please send your proposals to Jacqueline Joseph.

Exploring Sparse Literature, Case Studies, and Best Practices in Initials Analysis

Susan Abbey, CDE, D-BFDE

With cases involving initials, what are the best procedures?  What does the literature say?

The literature is surprisingly sparse in this important area.  In this presentation references  from authoritative books and journals that are available will be cited.  Examples of cases where there are suspected page substitutions and other types of cases where initials can create difficulties or questions of authenticity will be explored.  Sources of initials for comparison purposes will be suggested.

Dangers of Low Level Opinions - Probative vs. Prejudicial

Emily J. Will, CDE, D-BFDE

In a field where opinions can not be formed extensively on the basis of numerical calculations, words matter.  The opinion scales relied upon by most forensic document examiners in the US have between 5 and 9 levels.  The descriptions of these levels are easily misapplied, adding to the subjectivity of opinions.  To further complicate matters, civil cases typically have a "more likely than not" standard which is considered to be more or less than 50% probability.  What really is going to be the difference between 51% and 49% liklihood in a handwriting examination?  This issue will be explored in depth.

Microsoft Word & Bierstadt/Aptos Fonts Give Document Date Clues

Thomas Phinney, MS, MBA, Font Detective

The Microsoft Word default font change from Calibri to Aptos in 2024 is of great interest for document examiners: obviously Aptos could not have been used  before it was designed, and it is now used any time a user does not explicitly choose a different font.  But Aptos was already available as early as 2021, under the name of Bierstadt.  Phinney discusses and shows the subtle spacing differences between Aptos and Bierstadt, and the timeline of the fonts' availability.

Less trumpeted than the Aptos switch are all the other default document formatting changes Microsoft Word made at the end of 2024:  to margins, point size and kerning.  Even when Aptos is not in use, these other settings can provide circumstantial evidence for document creation dates - especially kerning, which is rarely manually turned on by most users.

KANSAS CITY ATTRACTIONS

Plaza Area

Country Club Plaza  

Kauffman Garden  

Nelson Atkins Museum of Art. The personal HR Bloch collection, it’s a must!  

Kemper Contemporary Museum of Art  

Thomas Hart Benton Home and Studio Museum  3613 Belleview Ave. Kansas City, MO 64111

Crown Center Union Station

World War I Museum  If you are a history buff and have not been to this museum, it comes highly recommended

Union Station  Lots of activities, exhibits, Science City, restaurants and evidence from the 1933 Union Station Massacre between FBI, Frank Nash, Pretty Boy Floyd and others.

Crown Center  

Kansas City Cross Roads Art District

 Boulevard Brewery  You can take a brewery tour, but you have to get tickets ahead of time or you can enjoy their tasting room as well. Go to website for additional details

Trolley Tour  

KC Gangster Tour 

 

Power and Light District Area/Crossroads Crossroads Building Murals  Take a walking tour of the Crossroads.

Bop into Thou Mayest Coffee Shop Up Down Bar  Featuring 50 arcade games from the 80s and 90s, Pac Man, Yard Jenga and Connect Four

Power and Light District  College Basketball Experience  The American Jazz Museum  18th and Vine Historic District in KC

Negro Leagues Baseball Museum  1616 E 18th St, Kansas City, MO 64108

Green Lady Lounge (KC Jazz)  1809 Grand Blvd

Black Dolphin Lounge (Jazz)  The Blue Room (KC Jazz)  Tired of Driving? Take the Streetcar from Union Station to City Market and the Power and Light District. It’s free to ride!

River Market Area

River Market  

Steamboat Arabia Museum  Food

Bryants Barbeque (best in KC)  Gates Barbeque

Michael Smith’s Extra Virgin Restaurant  

Christopher Elbow Chocolatier Andre’s Chocolates and Restaurant  5018 Main St.

To the East – Jackson County

Truman Library

 

To the West – Western Wyandotte County

The Legends 

Casinos

Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway

Lawrence, Kansas

Downtown Lawrence  

Sports Museum at Allen Field House Natural Original Rules of Basketball are on display Spencer Museum of Art KU Campus

Other events can be found here