Reading standard
Statements about misconduct, motive, identity, conspiracy, retaliation, information access, or responsibility should be read according to their stated evidence basis. Original sources control over summaries.
Why I use evidence grades
Long investigations become unreliable when every sentence is treated as if it has the same foundation. A text message, a witness recollection, a coincidence, and a proposed information route are different kinds of material. The A–E system forces each important proposition to disclose its basis.
A — Primary documentary evidence
Original messages, emails, photographs, video, device records, government correspondence, filings, metadata, logs, native audio, and other contemporaneous records. A document proves only what it actually shows. A screenshot of a message may establish visible content but may not establish the full thread, sender attribution, native metadata, or device history.
B — Independent witness evidence
Firsthand information supplied by an identifiable witness. The witness should be separated from what I told them. A witness who personally heard a statement can testify to that statement; a witness who learned it from me is not independent proof of the underlying event.
C — Corroborative evidence
Independent circumstances supporting another item without independently proving the disputed proposition. Timing, location, a related record, or an independent observation may strengthen another item while still falling short of proving attribution or intent.
D — My firsthand recollection
Things I personally remember seeing, hearing, saying, or experiencing when there is not yet documentary corroboration. Firsthand recollection is evidence, but memory can be incomplete. It should not silently be upgraded to a documented fact.
E — Investigative hypothesis
A proposed connection, identity, source, motive, relationship, agreement, or explanation that still needs confirmation. Examples include a suspected source-of-knowledge route, a proposed enterprise relationship, or a theory that one event caused another.
How grades change
Evidence classification is not permanent. A D-level recollection can become corroborated by a native message or independent witness. An E-level source theory can become A-supported if an access log and communication chain establish it. A theory can also move the other direction when records contradict it.
The rule that matters most
Never use an A-grade document to imply an E-grade conclusion unless the document actually supports that conclusion. A government letter can prove the letter was sent and what it says. It does not prove every allegation mentioned in the letter.