Satoru C. "John" Shimoda
May 26, 2020
Satoru C. "John" Shimoda passed away on May 26, 2020 just a few months after his 100th birthday. John was a Life Member of the ASQDE.
Mr. Shimoda was the 15th president of the American Society of Questioned Document Examiners serving from 1978 to 1980. He was a Life Member of the ASQDE.
He was one of the first Diplomates of the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners. He was a Retired Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and was also a Life Member of the California Division of the International Association for Identification.
In 2007, John received the Albert S. Osborn Award of Excellence in recognition of his distinguished career and the many contributions he made to both the ASQDE and the profession as a whole.
Mr. Shimoda was born in Oregon in 1919. During World War II, he served in the highly decorated 442nd Infantry Regiment, which was made up almost entirely of second-generation Japanese soldiers. After the war, he worked in Army counter-intelligence and later as a criminal investigator.
He began his questioned document examination career in the U.S. Army Crime Laboratory in the 1950's. He also trained with Albert D. Osborn and Frank Murphy. Upon retirement from the Army, he became the Assistant Director of the United States Postal Inspection Service Western Region Crime Laboratory and was later appointed as Director of the laboratory.
Among his many major cases was the famous San Francisco "Zodiac" case. He retired in 1999 after 32 years with the postal laboratory and more than 55 years of accumulated federal service.
Article: John Shimoda, renowned forensics expert who served in WWII and Korean wars, dies at 100
Article: Satoru C. "John" Shimoda: The 2007 Albert S. Osborn Award Recipient
He was one of the first Diplomates of the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners. He was a Retired Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and was also a Life Member of the California Division of the International Association for Identification.
In 2007, John received the Albert S. Osborn Award of Excellence in recognition of his distinguished career and the many contributions he made to both the ASQDE and the profession as a whole.
Mr. Shimoda was born in Oregon in 1919. During World War II, he served in the highly decorated 442nd Infantry Regiment, which was made up almost entirely of second-generation Japanese soldiers. After the war, he worked in Army counter-intelligence and later as a criminal investigator.
He began his questioned document examination career in the U.S. Army Crime Laboratory in the 1950's. He also trained with Albert D. Osborn and Frank Murphy. Upon retirement from the Army, he became the Assistant Director of the United States Postal Inspection Service Western Region Crime Laboratory and was later appointed as Director of the laboratory.
Among his many major cases was the famous San Francisco "Zodiac" case. He retired in 1999 after 32 years with the postal laboratory and more than 55 years of accumulated federal service.
Article: John Shimoda, renowned forensics expert who served in WWII and Korean wars, dies at 100
Article: Satoru C. "John" Shimoda: The 2007 Albert S. Osborn Award Recipient