Fingerprinting Flashcards
What is a latent print
Unintentional impression of friction ridges
Hidden and must be enhanced to be seen
What are latent prints used for
Establish presence at crime scene
Establish contact with item of evidence
Confirm or refute an incident or statement
What is unique about fingerprints
No two people have the exact same print
What is a patent fingerprint
Visible without enhancement
What is a plastic fingerprint
3D
Seen when fingerprints are pressed into a soft substance
What are the 3 fingerprint patterns
Loops
Whorls
Arches
What is minutia
The ridge characteristics of the fingerprint
What are 3 main reasons prints are not recovered from a surface/item
Environment
Surface
Person
What are 3 categories of evidence surface types
Non-porous
Porous
Semi-porous
What is the best practice when fingerprinting small items
Preserve and send to the lab
Where are some places you may find prints
Path perpetrator may have traveled Touched items Destroyed or damaged items Weapons or tools Items left behind
What is the most common fingerprint pattern
Loops
Why would you roll fingers nailbed to nailbed
To get the full pattern type
What are items you should have in your fingerprint processing kit
Standard and magnetic powders Brushes Lift tape Lift cards Scale
True or false
You should lift a fingerprint before photographing it
False
Where on the body are friction ridges located
Palm
Fingers
Feet
Toes
When photographing what is the one thing you should have other then the print itself
Scale
On the lift documentation card what are the required fields that need to be filled out
Date Case # Location Description of item Officer initials/badge number
What are elimination prints
Prints taken to eliminate a victim or subject and/or eliminate out any other legitimate prints at the scene
What are major case prints
Murder
Homicides
Rapes
