Fingerprinting Procedure and Its Importance - Essay Example

Fingerprints are often left inadvertently and can show what a person has done and where they have been. It is an excellent way of tying a suspect to a crime scene. There are different types of fingerprints found by investigators. Some are visible and some are latent. Visible prints are those taken from a suspect usually using ink. They are clear and whole. Latent prints are usually left accidentally and may only be partial. They may not be visible to the eye and may require dusting. Fingerprints in the past were largely classified by ridge formation.

Loops, whorls, and arches on a fingerprint were also used to distinguish various prints from one another. Fingerprints are now generally photographed and kept in a digital database. This makes them much easier to access. New fingerprints can be scanned in. Fingerprints are still a useful form of evidence, but they are not as determinative as DNA. They are especially useful in showing where people have been and what they have done, while DNA (in some cases) may simply put a person at the scene of a crime.

Fingerprints may be considered more illustrative.