AUTOMATED LATENT PRINT SECTION

The Automated Latent Print Section, ALPS, specializes in identification through examination of friction ridge skin impressions. This is an applied science based upon the foundation of uniqueness and permanence of ridge detail found on fingers and palms.

Evidence for the ALPS unit consists of lifts or photographs of prints from crimes scenes or evidence items, and major case prints from known individuals or suspects. Most prints from crime scenes are "latent" or cannot be seen, and the ALPS unit relies on the expertise of the Latent Print Development Section to visualize the prints.

The two most common analyses for the ALPS unit consists of comparing the friction ridge detail of prints from crime scenes to the prints of known suspects, or entering prints without suspects into the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS).
The AFIS system is a powerful tool which consists of a network of local, state and federal database depositories which house the know prints of persons previously arrested. This system often enables examiners to provide suspects names to cases where they may not have been any suspects yet developed.

If a suspect is developed through the use of the AFIS system, the skills of a trained latent print examiner are still necessary to make the final confirmation or elimination of a suspect. All analytical conclusions are confirmed by two examiners independently. Since our agency is a regional crime laboratory, we also assist other agencies with their fingerprint evidence. In addition, our examiners are available for call out assistance at crime scenes.