Evidence

New Fingerprint Test IDs What Suspect Has Touched

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It costs a lot more more. But a new type of fingerprint test, mass spectrometry, can identify not only the individual who left the print but what that person has been touching.

“The equipment to perform such tests is already commercially available, although expensive. Smaller, cheaper, portable versions are probably only a couple of years away,” reports the New York Times.

The new test may pose some ethical issues: It could, for example, potentially be used by employers to test for drugs on employees’ computer keyboards, after they go home for the night.

Related coverage:

ABAJournal.com: “DNA Better Than Prints for Burglar ID, But What’s the Cost?”

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