Fingerprint Evidence Expert Witnesses

Richard T. Picciochi is a Questioned Document Examiner with over thirty five years of experience in the New York City Police Department Crime Laboratory and in private practice. He is retired from the NYPD Forensic Investigation Division where he was a Detective, Document Examiner and the Technical Supervisor of the Questioned Document Unit. In the course of his career he has examined thousands of disputed signature, handwriting and document cases, participated in numerous high profile investigations and testified in trials including the "Zodiac" homicides and the first terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City.

Mr. Picciochi possesses a background that integrates the natural sciences, forensic sciences and law enforcement investigations. He has earned a Master of Science degree in Forensic Science and has received extensive specialized training in questioned document analysis by the NYPD, the FBI and the United States Secret Service.

Mr. Picciochi is a Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners (ABFDE) and was awarded certification upon completion of comprehensive written, practical and oral examinations. He is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and the International Association for Identification.

Mr. Picciochi specializes in the examination of signatures and has testified in state, federal and international courts. He will accept civil, criminal and administrative cases and offers his services to both Plaintiff and Defense attorneys.

• Foundation Fingerprint Course
• Intermediate Fingerprint Course
• Advanced Fingerprint Course
• Scene Examiner
• Trained as Crime Scene Manager
• FERRT (Forensic Evidence Recovery and Retrieval Techniques) Trained

• Criminal Cases - Perform a comparison of an identified case and offer an independent analysis of the identification. Offer evidence to advise the Defense on related fingerprint matters.
• Immigration - Provide an impartial comparison of sets of fingerprints in dispute and provide an independent report into the comparison.
• Civil Cases - Assist Courts and Tribunals throughout the UK and abroad on issues involving contracts, wills and covenants.
• International Electoral Services - analyze ballot slips for duplicate or multiple thumb impressions.
• Fingerprint Development - developed fingermarks are photographed in line with published guidelines which allow for "cradle to grave" service.

Ideal Innovations, Inc. (I³) is recognized as an industry leader for biometric examination services, including expert fingerprint identification, latent print identification comparisons, data base system administration, information technologies, Automated Biometric Information System support and biometric data enrollment services.

Litigation Support - I³ strives to provide unbiased support for any request for comparison of facial images. They offer subject matter expertise in the area of consultation services for Facial Comparisons. Their Subject Matter Experts are key members of the Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for Forensic Sciences, the Facial Identification Scientific Working Group (FISWG), and the International Association for Identification (IAI) Facial Identification Subcommittee.

 I³ has supported requests for attorneys (both prosecution and defense), historical photograph examinations, and missing children. They also offer expert witness testimony services regarding comparisons conducted by I³ personnel.

Areas of Expertise:

Lora S. Sims, CTPE currently serves as the Director of the Facial Identification Training and a Biometrics SME. In this position, Ms. Sims coordinates all training classes as well as many other Face related activities within the company and also provides subject matter expertise on Biometrics for contracts and consulting/expert witness work. 

Ms. Sims is an IAI Certified Tenprint Examiner and is the current chair of both the Facial Identification Scientific Working Group (FISWG) and the Facial Identification Subcommittee of the Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for Forensic Sciences. She also sits on the IAI Facial Identification Subcommittee.

Ms. Sims joined Ideal Innovations, Inc. in 2008 as a Tenprint Examiner at the DoD DFBA, which transitioned into a Sr. Biometric Examiner comparing multiple biometrics (fingerprints, faces, and irises). In this position, she co-authored a training to competency program on facial identification & comparisons and is responsible for mentoring and training new employees through the tenprint and facial training program while integrating them into an operational environment

Steven Lee Johnson joined the I³ Advisory Board after 13 years of service to the company as Senior Vice President. Mr. Johnson is the current Chair of the Forensics Science Standards Board (FSSB) of the Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC), a National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) entity dedicated to strengthening the nation’s use of forensic science by facilitating the development of technically sound forensic science standards and by promoting the adoption of those standards by the forensic science community. 

Mr. Johnson served in the past as President and Chair of the IAI, secretary and chair of the IAI Forensic Art Certification Board, past chair of the IAI Science and Practices Committee, chair of the IAI Biometric Information Systems Committee and the chair of the IAI Facial Identification provisional sub-committee. In addition to his affiliation with the IAI, Mr. Johnson is an Associate Member of the International Association of Cranio-Facial Identifiers.

Mr. Johnson worked numerous forensic/biometric support contracts for the Department of Defense (DoD) and was actively involved in the development of DoD forensics and biometric standards. He is an International Association for Identification (IAI) Certified Latent Print Examiner (CLPE) and Forensic Artist. Prior to coming to I3, Steve served 20 years in the law enforcement community providing leadership and expertise in criminal investigation and forensic sciences at the municipal and state levels.

View Ideal Innovations, Inc.'s Consulting Profile.

• Examination of Handwriting, Signatures, Fraudulent Additions and Alterations
• Approximate Age of Documents
• Photo Static and Scanned Transplantations of Signatures
• Traced, Freehand and Impersonation Forgeries
• Denial of Normal or Disguised (Changed) Signatures
• Anonymous Letters
• Body Writings on Account Opening Forms
• Denial of Withdrawal of Money
• Development of Latent Finger or Palm Prints from the Cheques
• Bank Documents by Ninhydrin (Chemical) Method Used for Impression Sweat on Paper
• Opinions on Folds
• Sequence of Strokes and Distinction Between Inks
• Insertion of Typed or Printed Matter
• Fake Currency Notes
• Credit Card Forgeries
• Identification of Computer Typed Documents
• Fake Seals and Rubber Stamps