Saturday, June 09, 2007

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.
Read the rest of the story online!

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