ESDA test

plural ESDA tests

1. criminologyA nondestructive forensic technique used to reveal hidden or indented writing on paper.

   On 3 January 1991 the long awaited reply from the RUC with regard to the ESDA tests was at last received.

   1990, Ian Paisley (Jr.), Reasonable Doubt, The Case for the UDR Four, page 138

   3 more examples

   In one case an ESDA test showed that the police had tampered with eight to ten pages of interview notes, but the judge nevertheless accepted the police's word as to their veracity; to make matters worse, by the time the case came on for appeal the ESDA exhibits had mysteriously disappeared.

   1999, Clive Walker, Keir Starmer (editors), Miscarriages of Justice, A Review of Justice in Error, page 297

   Meanwhile, The Sweater Letter had made its way to the State Police Crime Lab in East Lansing. It underwent an ESDA test for indented handwriting from the previous page. Lt. James Steggell called Bob Ball with the results

   2002, David L. Distel, The Sweater Letter, page 158

   Did you hear about PACE (the police and criminal evidence act)? When the ESDA test came in, which allows you to determine if hand-written documents have been altered, we found out just how prone to fake statements the police are. So we "tied the hands of the police" with a whole lot of procedural rules. Anarchy was predicted. In reality, of course, crime rates continue to fall.

   2015 June 25, Malcolm McMahon, “Police Under Attack!!!”, in alt.atheism (Usenet)