I think the language,wording,etc in the confession letter, could have been from a younger writer, who had watched alot of old movies, read comic books, etc, and simply used words & phrases that may have been beyond his years.

Let’s look closer at the Confession letter, and see what lines up with Zodiac.

*Misspelling of the word TWICH

*Use of the word SHALL

*Wants to be published

*Claims he made a phone call afterwards

Hello, I was wondering if this typed letter was ever specifically linked to a certain name/model of a type writer?

Hello, I was wondering if this typed letter was ever specifically linked to a certain name/model of a type writer?

I believe it was a Remington with an Elite font. I will double check.

They could never trace it to the exact typewriter that did the typing, because, the typer of the note used several carbons to type the letter

Re "The Confession": anyone know how many spaces there are in its "signature"? I’ve tried to count them, but my eyes go blurry.

We decided it was 19 according to the discussion on the old forum.

For visual confirmation.

Wasn’t Ross Sullivan’s middle name Michael? That would make 19

Following the recent desktop poem discussion, I’m keen on hearing more opinions on Morrill versus the FBI (or other experts) as regards exemplars, sample sizes, etc.

I find it very odd that someone can conclude, based on this:

that Z "unquestionably" wrote the confession letter. It just seems like an incredibly small sample size (not to mention that the writing doesn’t look anything like Z to my untrained eyes, but that is less relevant).

And keep in mind that this is ONLY a question of Morrill’s conclusion – there may be other reasons for thinking the letter was from Z, but those could not possibly have mattered to Morrill, whose task it was to compare handwriting alone.

This help Norse?

This help Norse?

Thanks, Mr L – but the problem with the DOJ report is that it isn’t specific at all regarding Morrill’s conclusions. All we know is that he identified Z as the writer – we don’t know the reasoning behind his conclusions.

It seems very odd that anyone can conclude firmly (and officially, as it were) that NN has prepared a document when said document in practice is a tiny sample of capital letters. *

My original point, made in the other thread, was that if you read through the FBI files, you’ll see numerous examples of documents which are labeled "inconclusive" in terms of identifying the writer/comparing the writing to known Z missives. Many of these are, in practice, tiny samples. And it seems logical – to me, at least – that in many cases an expert would, simply, conclude that the exemplar in question doesn’t contain a sufficient amount of writing to make analysis meaningful.

* According to some sources another copy of the confession letter was sent to the police – and it is possible that the writing on the second envelope was…I don’t know, different and perhaps more helpful to Morrill. But it’s still hard to see how it could have been a larger sample.

Not many people questioned an expert back in the day.. Not a good career move. Wonder what modern forensic handwriting experts would make of it all. Not sure what credentials or training got you into the top job. I’ll go along with your reasoning Norse, the reasoning that it is such a small sample to use for comparisons. But for to say..on the balance of probabilities one must leave this crime in Z’s hands in case that’s where the link lies.. Because if Bates is the first victim then usually that’s where the most mistakes/evidence will have been made. That’s where the links will come from. So for now Cheri Jo has to be included.
Cheers.

Edit.. And if Cheri Jo bates murder is not Z then at least the case is still being researched. Which brings back the theories of two killers and who took the kudos for them.

Not many people questioned an expert back in the day.. Not a good career move. Wonder what modern forensic handwriting experts would make of it all. Not sure what credentials or training got you into the top job. I’ll go along with your reasoning Norse, the reasoning that it is such a small sample to use for comparisons. But for to say..on the balance of probabilities one must leave this crime in Z’s hands in case that’s where the link lies.. Because if Bates is the first victim then usually that’s where the most mistakes/evidence will have been made. That’s where the links will come from. So for now Cheri Jo has to be included.
Cheers.

Edit.. And if Cheri Jo bates murder is not Z then at least the case is still being researched. Which brings back the theories of two killers and who took the kudos for them.

Not sure, I think that almost Anybody can become a Doc examiner, just like Barto(Jack T) and Wakshull(Van Best), and you see how good they are I think to get to the rank as high as Sherwood Morrill, it takes more than a quick class and a piece of paper. Sorry, but he was the State’s lead examiner, and that holds more weight for me.

Personally, I think that "No-Shite Sherwood" never saw a Zodiac letter that he wouldn’t confirm authentic.
His professional opinion holds very little weight, to me. But hey, opinions, we all have them.

-glurk

Personally, I think that "No-Shite Sherwood" never saw a Zodiac letter that he wouldn’t confirm authentic.
His professional opinion holds very little weight, to me. But hey, opinions, we all have them.

-glurk

In the end, a writing examiner is just one tool in the Police arsenal. They would rather have DNA, prints, Ballistics matches etc. But still, I would rather have a much experienced and respected Docs examiner that was head of QD for the DOJ as oppsoed to a Barto or Wakshull

Personally, I think that "No-Shite Sherwood" never saw a Zodiac letter that he wouldn’t confirm authentic.
His professional opinion holds very little weight, to me. But hey, opinions, we all have them.

-glurk

In the end, a writing examiner is just one tool in the Police arsenal. They would rather have DNA, prints, Ballistics matches etc. But still, I would rather have a much experienced and respected Docs examiner that was head of QD for the DOJ as oppsoed to a Barto or Wakshull

As was Shimoda and other FBI examiners–tops of their game. And ultimately, that is part of the reason why Cheri Jo is NOT (mr lowe) considered a Zodiac victim in the eyes of LE. They simply need more to go on, but in Cheri’s case they do have a print, and DNA.

Another matter is that printing in the actual Bates letters looks nothing like Zodiac’s. Nothing. Morrill saying that? Could have hurt his career! To me, the only thing going for the Confession envelope is circled i’s.

I was bored earlier, so I made this (not intended as anything but a summary of sorts for my own benefit, but I post it nonetheless, as it includes at least some points which others might want to debate further):

PS Includes the "had to die" notes as well, so not strictly on topic in that sense:

Confession letter:

Similarities:

Use of “shall” = interesting but clearly inconclusive. I have a feeling we, as Z buffs, tend to exaggerate the significance of “shall” (which isn’t THAT uncommon, after all).

Misspelling, “twich” = interesting but, from what I can gather, a pretty common misspelling. I did a Google search just now: The term “eye twich” is very common.

Handwriting similarities = impossible to ignore. The big BUT here is, of course, that the experts differ on the subject. Morrill’s conclusions are not undisputed. Sample size is tiny – just the address on the envelopes, written in capitals.

Writer claims to have called the police.

Differences:

Letter is typewritten. The tone is different from the detached, often sarcastic one Z used in his known letters. The explicit use of the victim’s name stands out, as does the intimate language used to describe the killer’s interaction with the victim. This does not resemble Z’s known letters at all.

Bates notes:

Similarities:

Copy of note sent to press. Possible “z” like letter/mark which could be construed as a signature. Not conclusive by any means, however. Morrill identified writer as Z. See above. Excess postage.

Differences:

Note sent to victim’s family. Z never did this. Handwriting appears to be different to the naked eye. Note very brief and content wise nothing like the known Z missives.