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handwriting expert that she probably forged the check. As noted earlier, Taylor testified that it was "probable" that Rosario had forged the check. "Probable" is a term of art used by Secret Service document examiners. The "probable" category falls exactly in the middle of the six- point spectrum between "positive identification" and "positive elimination." Thus, handwriting experts will use _ the term "probable" to describe times when the evidence falls considerably short of the "virtually certain" category and yet still points rather strongly toward the suspect, i.e., there are several significant similarities present between the questioned and known writings, but there are also a number of irreconcilable differences and the examiner suspects that they are due to some factor but cannot safely attribute the lack of agreement to the effect of that factor. Thomas V. Alexander, Definition of Handwriting Opinions, App. at 37A. The government concedes that Taylor's testimony alone would be insufficient to sustain a conviction under § 510(a). http://vis.law. vill.edu/locator/3d/July1997/97a1636p.htm Page 11 of 29 _ 5/10/2005