March 2015 Media Report
Peter Jones gave us the benefit of his 38 years experience with the fingerprint branch of the Metropolitan Police. We learnt how fingerprints can be deposited on surfaces and the techniques developed to lift them and classify them by their unique whorls and ridges.
Every person has a unique set of imprints on their fingers and feet which form in the foetus from 20 weeks and remain constant throughout life and beyond the grave until the flesh eventually decays. In certain cases mummified bodies from 2000 years ago have retained their unique prints. The patterns will even regrow in exactly the same formation if the skin is burnt or, as one hapless criminal discovered, dipped in acid to try to prevent identification.
It is not known exactly when the uniqueness of the fingerprint was first realised but centuries old pottery has been discovered with the potter's mark on it and the engraver and naturalist Thomas Bewick (1753 -1928)used his fingerprint as a signature on his work suggesting he knew it was unique. Later it was used as a means of signing for wages when workers were unable to read or write.
Peter went on to show how from the 19th century the technique began to be used to identify criminals and to provide a record of their crimes enabling police to identify them should they re offend. Even the wily identical twins Ebenezer Albert Fox and Albert Ebenezer Fox were not able to use their modus operandi of swapping identities to escape the long arm of the law!
During the 20th century the system evolved from laborious manual checking of millions of individual card indexes and using inked pads to the almost instantaneous identification of computerised systems and scanning of the fingers.
Peter and his colleagues were involved in solving many of the notorious cases which remain in the national memory, aiding in the conviction of such murderers as the Black Panther, Donald Neilson, as well as working on identifying bodies from rail disasters, fires and solving countless more mundane crimes.
From the early days when the only equipment available to the finger print expert was a magnifying glass and every force kept their records locally we are now at a stage when every force can check a data base of 6.5 million records in seconds and information can be shared internationally.
Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 7th April when Esme Hodge will take us on the final part of the journey through Swanley Then and Now. Clocktower Pavilion St Mary's Rd Swanley 7.15 for 7.30 p.m. Contact us via email or see our Faeebook page for further information.
Ann Hollands
Group Secretary
Peter Jones gave us the benefit of his 38 years experience with the fingerprint branch of the Metropolitan Police. We learnt how fingerprints can be deposited on surfaces and the techniques developed to lift them and classify them by their unique whorls and ridges.
Every person has a unique set of imprints on their fingers and feet which form in the foetus from 20 weeks and remain constant throughout life and beyond the grave until the flesh eventually decays. In certain cases mummified bodies from 2000 years ago have retained their unique prints. The patterns will even regrow in exactly the same formation if the skin is burnt or, as one hapless criminal discovered, dipped in acid to try to prevent identification.
It is not known exactly when the uniqueness of the fingerprint was first realised but centuries old pottery has been discovered with the potter's mark on it and the engraver and naturalist Thomas Bewick (1753 -1928)used his fingerprint as a signature on his work suggesting he knew it was unique. Later it was used as a means of signing for wages when workers were unable to read or write.
Peter went on to show how from the 19th century the technique began to be used to identify criminals and to provide a record of their crimes enabling police to identify them should they re offend. Even the wily identical twins Ebenezer Albert Fox and Albert Ebenezer Fox were not able to use their modus operandi of swapping identities to escape the long arm of the law!
During the 20th century the system evolved from laborious manual checking of millions of individual card indexes and using inked pads to the almost instantaneous identification of computerised systems and scanning of the fingers.
Peter and his colleagues were involved in solving many of the notorious cases which remain in the national memory, aiding in the conviction of such murderers as the Black Panther, Donald Neilson, as well as working on identifying bodies from rail disasters, fires and solving countless more mundane crimes.
From the early days when the only equipment available to the finger print expert was a magnifying glass and every force kept their records locally we are now at a stage when every force can check a data base of 6.5 million records in seconds and information can be shared internationally.
Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 7th April when Esme Hodge will take us on the final part of the journey through Swanley Then and Now. Clocktower Pavilion St Mary's Rd Swanley 7.15 for 7.30 p.m. Contact us via email or see our Faeebook page for further information.
Ann Hollands
Group Secretary