Fingerprints used in Forensic Investigations

Diana Gurdoglanyan

The discovery of fingerprints has been widely attributed to a 19th century scientist named Francis Galton. He
conducted the first decisive study of finger ridge patterns and established a system of grouping them for future
reference. His book, Finger Prints, educated the world of forensic science on how personal and unique a fingerprint
can be. Evidence exists, however, that the Chinese were aware of this phenomenon. An ancient Chinese custom
includes using the fingerprint to sign legal documents.

Galton's proposal that "no two fingerprints are identical" changed the world of forensic science forever. Galton
believed that fingerprints were not inherited and that even identical twins had different ridge patterns. In order for
fingerprinting to be useful in forensic identification, a method of sorting and classifying them would be necessary.
Dr. Juan Vucetich, a policeman intrigued by Galton's studies also worked to find a means of classification. Vucetich's
method is used widely among Spanish speaking nations. English speaking nations however, have adopted another
system of classification attributed to Sir Edward Richard Henry. Henry established five basic patterns, adding tented
arches to Galton's three groups (loops, whorls and arches), and dividing loops into two different classes.

Fingerprint impressions fall into three basic types: latent, visible, and the plastic (molded), prints. By far, the
most frequent is the latent print, which is invisible to the eye. Latent prints are formed by sweat, "either from the
hands themselves or by unconscious contact between the fingers and the face or other parts of the body". Even the
swiftest of criminals find it difficult to escape without leaving behind the trace of a single fingerprint. The most
common method of developing latent prints is to use a gray or black powder to expose the hidden print. Dusting
the crime scene is the commonest, simplest and oldest latent print developing technique. A powder, usually black,
is dusted on wood, metal, glass and other such surfaces to make the prints apparent to the naked eye. The powder
is composed of resinous polymers that can be mixed in literally hundreds of ways and adheres to the skin oils that
invariably are left behind on anything touched directly with the fingers. In addition, fluorescent and phosphorescent
fingerprint powders have been created to solve the contrast problem of developing fingerprints on many colored
surfaces. Iodine fuming is another technique. Iodine crystals vaporize rapidly when subjected to heat and produce
violet fumes that are absorbed by skin oils. Latent prints absorb the iodine fumes and become visible. "They are
visible as long as the fumes last". Another form of chemical fuming is cyanoacrylate fuming.

This was discovered in 1982 by latent fingerprint examiners at the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory in
Japan. This method is particularly useful in developing latent prints on household items such as plastic bags,
aluminum, and rubber bands. Cyanoacrylate is the chemical used in Superglue. In addition to black powder, a white
powder is used to develop latent prints. This white powder is composed of the chemical ninhydrin. The traces of
amino acids present in perspiration bind with the ninhydrin and the prints begin to appear in about an hour.
Ninhydrin is the most common chemical reagent used for developing latent prints on paper. Silver nitrate reacts
with the sodium chloride in perspiration to develop latent prints in much the same way that ninhydrin reacts with
amino acids. The last of the commonly used latent print development methods is the Gentian violet method.
Gentian violet or crystal violet is used to stain nonliving epidermal cells or perspiration that has been left on almost
any type of surface. Tape is used to remove whatever might be present from the surface to be sampled. It is then
run through the solution of gentian violet. The second type of print is the visible print. Obviously, visible prints are
the most legible. Fingers stained with blood or ink found can form visible prints. The third type, the plastic print, is
quite easy to read as well because it is an impression made on a soft surface such as soap, putty, or wax.

Each fingerprint has a focal point, used by an analyst for classification purposes. One type of focal point is the
core. The analyst looks for points where the ridges bifurcate, divide into two after being one, or diverge, split apart
after running parallel. The delta is the other type of focal point. The delta is the ridge point nearest the type line
divergence. Fingerprints are further distinguished by the ridge count, the number of ridges that either cross or
touch an imaginary line that runs from the core to the delta. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) technicians put a
glass sheet with a red line over the print they are examining, and then they move the line so that it runs from the
core to the delta, to ensure ridge count accuracy. When charting fingerprints, the analyst uses the letters A, T, R, U,
W: arch, tented arch, radial loop, ulnar loop and whorl respectively. Alongside the letters, the numbers 1-10 are
added to specify the number of the finger.

Arches, loops and whorls were Galton's primary system of division among the types of fingerprints. Statistics
today show that sixty to sixty five of the population has loops on their fingers, thirty to thirty five percent have
whorls as their fingerprint pattern and five percent have arches. A loop must have one or more ridges entering
from one side of the fingerprint, and exit from the same side. Ulnar loops are loops that open toward the little

finger and radial loops are just the opposite. Radial loops are loops that open toward the thumb. The most common
pattern is the ulnar loop. Whorls are divided into four distinct groups: plain, central pocket loop, double loop and
accidental. Whorls must contain a minimum of two deltas and must have a type line (pattern area of the loop
surrounded by two diverging ridges). Arches are classified in two different groups; plain arches and tented arches.
The ridges tend to rise in the center of the pattern. Tented arches have a sharp "spike" at the center. Arches lack
deltas, cores and type lines of any kind. Classification of fingerprints is part of Henry's original system which the
presence or absence of the whorl pattern is the basis for the determination of the primary classification. About 25%
of the population has fingers that all contain either loops or arches. The individuality of a fingerprint is determined
by its ridge characteristics called minutiae. There are several different types of ridge characteristics: bifurcation,
ridge ending, enclosure, island, short ridge, ridge crossing, etc. (refer to diagram).

Fingerprinting is indeed a blessing to investigators. It gives them a practically flawless means of nailing
murders, thieves and law abusers. Fingerprinting makes it possible for a crime to be solved without even one
tangible piece of evidence, such as a weapon. It is an amazing tool. Latent fingerprints are not visible to the naked
eye and therefore can be found anywhere in the crime scene without the criminal even realizing it. It is a foolproof
method for Galton proves to us that not one person can have another's fingerprints, they are as unique as the word
unique gets. The only fault that lies when dealing with fingerprint investigation lies within the hands of the
investigator. Careful precautions need to be taken at the crime scene so that the fingerprint is not lost. Once a print
is developed, it must be enduringly saved with precision. A photograph must be taken before any further steps are
taken in case there lies fault within the investigator preservation techniques.

Fingerprints have been the reason for the solving of a vast amount of cases. The case of Thomas Jennings in
1910 was the case, which resulted in the first American murder trial to admit fingerprint testimony. Clarence Hiller
lived with his wife and four children. On the morning of September 19, 1910, Mr. Hiller woke up to find that a
gaslight near her daughter's bedroom was not burning. On the landing, he found a stranger and engaged in
combat. Both men tumbled down the staircase. Seconds later, two shots were sound, as well as, Mr. Hiller's soft cry
for help. At the door, Mrs. Hiller found her husband dead. Investigators found some particles of sand and gravel at
the foot of the daughter's bed. Yet what convicted the killer, Thomas Jennings, were his fingerprints. Next to the
rear kitchen window, through which the killer had entered the home of the Hillers, were railings. By chance, Mr.
Hiller had painted these very railings just hours before his death. Into the paint four fingerprints of someone's left
hand was etched. American law enforcement has already adopted the principle of fingerprinting. Therefore, the
presence of these fingerprints was admissible in the court of law. At the trial, fingerprint expert William M. Evans of

the PDBI agreed that Jennings hand, and his alone, had left the prints on the railings. The appeal court affirmed the
verdict of the jury, guilty, and upheld Jenning's death sentence. He was later hanged.

Fingerprints were also the reasons behind the solving of another famous case: the case of the Stratton
Brothers. Thomas Farrow, and his wife, Ann, managed a paint shop in South London. On March 27, 1905, Mr.
Farrow had been found dead on the floor of his paint shop. Upstairs, where the couple kept a small room for
themselves, his wife lay, covered in blood, and barely alive. Just a few days later, Ann died. The discovery of two
masks at the scene of the crime suggested the presence of more than one intruder. They found a clear print on a
tray that did not match either victim. With the description given by milkman Henry Jennings, two brothers known
for burglary, Albert and Alfred Stratton were held custody. Both were taken to the Tower Bridge police station,
where Detective Inspector Charles Collins, a founding member of Scotland Yard's Fingerprint Branch in 1901, rolled
their fingers on the inkpad. The fingerprint on the tray matched Albert's right thumb to perfection. Thus, both
brothers were charged with murder.