Fingerprint Evidence
Fingerprint Evidence
Jose Tapia
Lt. Lathrop
CO8
June 10, 2013
Introduction The Study of fingerprints became one of the most important aspects in criminal investigations and forensic detections. This is because fingerprint identification is far too unique, and its success rate outperforms even DNA identification. Fingerprints identified at crime scenes fall into three categories, latent, plastic, and visible fingerprints. Many people don’t realize is that the importance of the fingerprints dated back to ancient times. Fingerprints are also very reliable evidence because the chances of any two individuals sharing the same fingerprints are roughly one in sixty four billion.
History
Fingerprints dates back to ancient times. The Chinese were among the earliest people to use fingerprints to establish identities in official records. In 1886 Marcello Malphigi an anatomy professor described the distinctive patterns that he had noticed on the fingers, formed by ridges. It wasn’t until 1877 in India when Sir William Herschel would inadvertently discover the practical application of fingerprints. He was looking for a way to prevent impersonations and forgeries, and discovered that the fingerprints greatly helped in the identification of a person. This was done by rubbing the palm of your hand with ink and stamping the print onto paper. After some careful experimentations and observations, Sir Herschel realized that no two prints are the same. His discovery became a major stepping stone for fingerprint applications in crime science. Soon after the discovery of Sir Herschel more scientific work began to be published on fingerprinting studies. Francis Galton, who was responsible for introducing the Galton’s Detail, noted for its importance in calculating the distinctiveness of fingerprinting details, and also for sketching out the basics for fingerprint classification system in 1892. This work would soon be followed up by Juan Vucetich, which soon led to the
Jose Tapia
Lt. Lathrop
CO8
June 10, 2013
Introduction The Study of fingerprints became one of the most important aspects in criminal investigations and forensic detections. This is because fingerprint identification is far too unique, and its success rate outperforms even DNA identification. Fingerprints identified at crime scenes fall into three categories, latent, plastic, and visible fingerprints. Many people don’t realize is that the importance of the fingerprints dated back to ancient times. Fingerprints are also very reliable evidence because the chances of any two individuals sharing the same fingerprints are roughly one in sixty four billion.
History
Fingerprints dates back to ancient times. The Chinese were among the earliest people to use fingerprints to establish identities in official records. In 1886 Marcello Malphigi an anatomy professor described the distinctive patterns that he had noticed on the fingers, formed by ridges. It wasn’t until 1877 in India when Sir William Herschel would inadvertently discover the practical application of fingerprints. He was looking for a way to prevent impersonations and forgeries, and discovered that the fingerprints greatly helped in the identification of a person. This was done by rubbing the palm of your hand with ink and stamping the print onto paper. After some careful experimentations and observations, Sir Herschel realized that no two prints are the same. His discovery became a major stepping stone for fingerprint applications in crime science. Soon after the discovery of Sir Herschel more scientific work began to be published on fingerprinting studies. Francis Galton, who was responsible for introducing the Galton’s Detail, noted for its importance in calculating the distinctiveness of fingerprinting details, and also for sketching out the basics for fingerprint classification system in 1892. This work would soon be followed up by Juan Vucetich, which soon led to the