BERNARD L. MADOFF

Bernard L. Madoff's handwriting is just about the worst type of dishonest specimen I have seen. It is so secretive (thready writing), so self-destructive (crossed out letters over his name), so manipulative (angled ending letters) and so thoroughly cunning and avoidant of being known (backhand thread) that it is amazing how people were fooled but his treachery. The pure illegible style indicates someone who clearly does not want his nature to be revealed. He has so hidden himself in his thready writing within such a clandestine script that I wonder if he even realizes the magnitude of his own deception.

Bernie not only was secretive but had a 20 year affair with Sheryl Weinstein the CFO of Hadassah. He stated, "I'm not to be trusted" a quote taken from her book "Madoff's Other Secret." What is interesting is that a woman who runs Hadassah did not take the advice he gave her and not only trusted him with an affair but he eventually betrayed her financially. Bernie told Sheryl he would invest in Hadassah but would not answer any questions at meetings. Denial is a very interesting defense mechanism that does not allow red flags to be seen.

The angled writing shows his toughness and the threading adds a sense of mystery. The strong cover strokes in his writing reveals a man who will never let his guard down and the excessive threading and cover strokes portray a man who is narcissistic, self-absorbed and hidden. It is well known that he did not like Donald Trump and Mayor Guiliani. Not a surprise that they were smart enough not to lose their money with him. Perhaps because they are direct and not easily fooled.

He was not the type to go after others but preferred them to come to him as evidenced by his backhand style. Backhand writers avoid confrontation and prefer others to approach them. It is an introverted position and one that reveals a level of vulnerability and fear of rejection.

His writing is very abrupt with all angles. There is nothing round or soft in the script which would indicate a lack of emotional sensitivity and a strong disposition of an inner coldness. This type will rarely show emotion. The writing itself is a bit bizarre, egocentric and eccentric. With so many cover strokes one can never really think he could be understood or trusted.

Bernie Madoff was involved in a Ponzi scheme and funneled money since the 60's. He always stayed under the radar as evidenced by his low middle zone snakelike script. There is nothing bold, tall or visually pleasing about the script. His script shows a web of lies, deception, manipulation, calculation and treachery.

The writing shows great insecurity, self-doubt and a sense of inadequacy as indicated by his self-defeating script. He states, "I don't deserve all I have" which might be one reason why he felt a need to punish himself. It is a well known psychological premise that when one does not feel they deserve, they usually find a way to self-destruct. However, it must be understood that the level of his schemes and total disregard for the welfare of others indicates little or no conscious. This is usually the behavior of a sociopathic personality type but we will leave the diagnois for the psychiarist. The backhand is of course fear-based but the illegible, crossed out strokes reveal a damaged and disturbed psyche. He encompassed many of the criminal traits of stealing, lying, cover-ups, denial and subterfuge.

The writing of his wife Ruth Madoff has a lot of strange twists and turns in her writing and for anyone who knows graphology can instantly see her shaky, twisted, tormented strokes. The R in Ruth is angled, shaky, inky, blotchy and the ductus (line) is tremulous. Her two f's at the end of the name Madoff which looks like 8's are twisted, linked and choked. These are f's that look like numbers (deceptive letters). Ruth worked in his office for years as a bookeeper, along with his father in law, so it is unlikely for those who are naive enough to believe she did not know to realize that she was just as entwined in his deception and certainly did know.

There are so many red flags that it is amazing that so many fell for his scheme when a simple handwriting analysis would have sent one screaming in the other direction.