Telltale Prints

Richard Gray, Fingerprints Tell A Story, London Sunday Telegraph, reprinted in the Washington Times (June 9, 2007):

LONDON -- For more than a century, fingerprints have helped to bring criminals to justice. Now, in a development that should help police catch more crooks, scientists have discovered how to coax details of an offender's lifestyle and health from the prints he or she leaves at a crime scene.
The technique will prove particularly valuable when officers are unable to find a match for a fingerprint on the national database. Currently, if no match is found, the print is useless until a suspect is brought in for questioning.
The new technique will reveal whether an offender smokes, takes drugs, drinks coffee, is using a certain type of medication or has a specific disease. This will help to narrow down the list of potential suspects, saving time and money for the police and securing more convictions.

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