NCJ Number
213436
Journal
Journal of Forensic Identification Volume: 56 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2006 Pages: 186-197
Date Published
April 2006
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This article reports on a comparative assessment of a few different powdering methods for the development of latent fingerprints on different substrates.
Abstract
The charcoal powder was found to be more suitable on bond paper for developing latent prints compared to the other substrates. The other powders--phloxine B dye, fluorescein dye, and rhodamine B dye--were more suitable on glass, multicolored paper, and plastic sheet. The effectiveness of processing decreased with the passage of time. Two thousand fingerprint test impression were collected from 25 individuals. They were collected with natural secretion and contaminants without washing the hands or wiping the forehead. The impressions were collected with a gap of 5 minutes between each impression, and the individuals were asked to rub their hands together. Each impression was placed on one of the four sample substrates: bond paper, glass, multicolored paper, or plastic sheet. The samples were apportioned to provide 100 test impressions for each of the 4 processes during each of the 5 time periods: 1 day, 2 days, 4 days, 6 days, and 7 days. After the use of each powder, the fingerprints were subjected to fluorescence and visual examination. 1 table, 4 figures, and 20 references