Professional Documents
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NOTES ON CRIMINALISTICS
PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION
Criminalistics
= Is the application of the principles of various sciences in solving problems in connection with the
administration of justice.
= Also referred to as Forensic Science or Police Science.
The word forensic was derived from the Latin word “Forum” which means a “market place”, a place where
people gathered for “public discussion” . When it is used in conjunction with other sciences it simply connotes the idea
of application to law or for the administration of justice. Sometimes it is also referred to as “legal”.
Dr. Hans Gross = An Australian magistrate to described Search for Truth as the ultimate goal of all investigative and
detective works. He is known as the Father of Modern Criminalistics.
A. PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION
“Law of Multiplicity of Evidence” The greater number of similarities or dissimilarities; the greater is the
probability for the conclusion to be correct.
Alphonse Bertillion = Father of Personal Identification. The first to devise a scientific method of identification
called Anthropometry.
A fingerprint was first used in China before the birth of Christianity. They called it Hua Chi.
I. Personalities in Fingerprints:
1. Nehemiah Grew (1684) – describes the ridges and pores of the hands and feet (Philosophical Transaction) presented
in Royal Society of London, England.
2. Govard .Bibloo – works on the sweat pores and ridges.
3. Marcelo Malpighi (1628-1694) – Professor at the University of Bolognia, Italy, known for his discovery of the
Epidermis and Dermis layer. Written the book entitled “De ExternoTactusOrgano” Father of Dactyloscopy.
4. J.C.A. Mayer (1788) – the first to state that fingerprints are never duplicated in two persons
( AnatomicheKuphertafeln).
5. Johannes Purkenjie (1823) – Professor at the University of Breslau, Germany. Established a certain role for
classification and be able to identify nine (9) types of pattern although never associated to identification
6. Herman Welcker – took his own fingerprints twice with a lapse of forty-one years and show the ridges formation
remains the same.
7. William Herschel – the first to advocate the use of fingerprints as substitute for signature from among Indian native
to avoid impersonation.
RajadharKonai = the first person Herschel printed the palm.
8. Henry Faulds – A surgeoon at TsukujiHospital, Tokyo, Japan, who claimed that latent prints would provide positive
identification of offenders once apprehended ( A Manual of Practical Dactyloscopy).
9. Francis Galton – Developed the Arch. Loop and Whorl Patterns as general classification and identified nine (9) types
of pattern. First to establish a Civil Bureau of Personal Identification. He said that the possibility of two prints being
alike was 1:65,000,000,000.
10. Edward Richard Henry – Developed the Henry System of Classification at Scotland Yard which was accepted by
almost all English-speaking country. Known as Father of Fingerprint.
Khan BahadurAzizulHaque and Rai Hem Chandra Bose – the two Hindu police officers who have help
Henry in attaining his goal.
11. Juan Vucetich – A Spanish counterpart of Henry who developed his own system of classification in Argentina and
was accepted in almost all Spanish Speaking country.
IN AMERICA
Gilbert Thompson = a geologist in New Mexico, adopted the first individual use of fingerprint in august 8, 1882 as
a protection to prevent tampering with the pay order.
Isaiah West Tabor = Photographer in San Francisco who advocated the use of the system for the registration of
the immigrant Chinese.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens = An Englishman who informally introduced Dactyloscopy in the United States in his
book “ Life in the Mississippi” and “ Pupp n Head Wilson”.
Francis Galton
Dr. Henry p De Forest = Utilized the first Municipal Civil use of fingerprint for Criminal Registration on December
1902 (Mun. Civil Service Comm., New York).
Capt. James L. Parke = Advocate the first state and penal use of fingerprint adopted in SingSing prison on June 5,
1903 later on Auburn Napanoch and Clinton Penitentiaries.
Sgt. John Kenneth Ferrier = First fingerprint instructor at St. Louis Police Dept. Missouri.
Maj. R. McCloughry = warden of the Federal Penitentiaries of Leaven Worth. Established the first official
National Government use of fingerpprint.
Mary K. Holand = first American instructress in dactyloscopy.
FBI = identification unit herein was officially established by an act of congress in 1924.
Institute of Applied Science = First private school to install laboratories for instruction purposes in dactyloscopy.
People vs. Jennings, Dec. 21, 1911 = United States leading case wherein the first conviction based on fingerprint
was recognized by the judicial authorities (14 points).
IN THE PHILIPPINES
Mr. Jones = one who first taught FP in the Phils. (1900)
Bureau of Prison = (1968) CARPETAS fingerprint was used.
Generoso Reyes – First Filipino Fingerprint Technician employed by P.C.
IsabelaBernales – first Filipina Fingerprint Technician
Capt. Thomas Dugan, New York Police Dept. and Flaviano Guerrero, FBI Washington – gave the first examination
in FP in 1927 and Agustin Patricio of the Phils. Top the Examination
People of the Phils. Vs. Medina- First conviction base on Fingerprint and leading case decision in the Phil.
Jurisprudence (10 points).
Plaridel Education Institute (PEI) now known as Phil. College of Criminology, first government recognized school
to teach the Science of Fingerprint and other Police Sciences.
John Dellinger – known U.S. public enemy number one who attempt to destroy his own prints using corrosive
acids.
Robert James Pitts – works on Surgery to forged his own fingerprints and was named “Man without fingerprint”
LucilaLalu – the first Filipina Chop-chop lady who was identified through fingerprint.
Alphonse Bertillion – known as the Father of the first scientific method of Identification (Anthropometry)
DACTYLOSCOPY
Definition
Dactyloscopy – (derived from the Latin words Dactyl = finger and Skopien – to study or examine) is the practical
application of the science of fingerprints.
Dactylography – is the scientific study of fingerprint as a means of identification.
Dactylomancy – is the scientific study of fingerprint for purposes of personality interpretation.
Dermatoglyphics = is the science which deals with the study of skin pattern. It is derived from two Greek words, Derma
which means Skin and Glype which means Carve.
Phalange = is the skeletal finger covered with friction skin. It is made up of three bones.
a. Basal or proximal phalange – it is located at the base of the finger nearest the palm.
b. Middle phalange = the next and above the basal done.
c. Terminal phalange = the particular bone covered with friction skin, having all the different types of
fingerprint patterns and it is located near the tip of the finger.
Friction Skin – is an epidermal hairless skin found on the ventral or lower surface of the hands and feet covered with
ridges and furrows.(Also called as Papillary skin).
Components of the Friction Skin
1. Ridge surface
a. Ridge – the elevated or hill like structure/ the black lines with tiny white dots.
b. Furrow – the depressed or canal like structure/ the white space between ridges.
2. Sweat pores – the tiny opening/ the tiny white dots.
3. Sweat duct – the passage way.
4. Sweat glands – the producers of sweat.
Ridge Formation – (Ridges starts to form in the fingers and thumb during the 3rd to 4th months of the fetus life.)
Dermal Papillae = are irregular pegs composed of delicate connective tissue protruding and forming the ridges of
the skin on the fingers, palms, toes and soles of the feet.
Ridge Destruction – destruction of the friction skin can either be temporary or permanent. Generally temporary
destruction occur when only the epidermis layer of the friction skin has been damage, while permanent damage can be
injected to the friction skin due to damage to the dermis layer.
2. Bifurcation – a ridge formation in which a single ridge splits or divides into two or more ridges. It resembles a fork
shape.
5. Enclosure or Lakeridge – a single ridge that divides into two but does not remain open and meet at a certain point to
form the original single ridge.
7. Type lines – is a diverging ridge that tends to surround the pattern area and serves as a basic boundary of fingerprint
impression.
8. Pattern Area – is a part of a loop of whorl pattern surrounded by the type lines and consisting of the delta, the core
and other ridges.
9. Recurving ridge – a single ridges that curves back to the direction where it started.
10. Sufficient Recurve – a recurving ridge which is complete with its should and free from any appendage.
13. Obstruction ridge – is a short ridge found inside the recurve which blocks the inner line of flow towards the core.
The sum of the numerical value assigned to even number of finger represent the numerator and the sum of the
assigned value to odd number represent the denominator Plus the pre-established fraction of l/1 to complete the
primary.
b. Secondary – Represented by Capital and small letter combination based on interpretation made
during the blocking.
Capital letter – derived from the index fingers which can be
(A, T, U, R, W, C, D or X).
Small letter – derived from the thumb, middle, ring and little fingers.
It only includes the radial loop (r), plain arch (a) and tented arch (t).
c. Sub-secondary Division – derived by ridge counting of loop and ridge
Tracing of whorl found at the index, middle ring fingers only.
Outer Whorl (O) when the tracing ridge goes below or outside the right delta and there are three (3)
or more intervening ridges.
Meeting Whorl (M) when there are only two orless intervening ridge/s
c.3 Plain Arch and Tented Arch are always dash (-)
f. Key Division = derived by getting the ridge count of the first (l) loop except the little fingers. In the
absence of the loop, the first whorl will be ridge counted for the purpose.
Reference Classification Formula = is an additional formula serve as a reference in case of doubtful prints. Place the
bottom of the classification formula.
Latent Prints = prints found at the scene of the crime.