Fingerprint Research

Dr Sarah Fieldhouse leads the department’s fingerprint research.  Her PhD research investigated factors affecting the deposition of latent fingermarks and methods used to assess their quality, which contributed to an investigation into the effectiveness of a portable cyanoacrylate fuming device and aluminium powder for the development of latent fingermarks.  A copy of the abstract can be viewed by clicking here (DOC, file size: 26KB) . Sarah’s PhD research has continued to investigate research methodologies in the area of friction ridge skin, and the development of latent friction ridge skin marks using portable cyanoacrylate fuming systems.  Her general research interests concern the improvement of latent friction ridge skin mark enhancement techniques, and factors affecting latent friction ridge skin mark longevity.  Additional research is currently being carried out in the area of friction ridge skin mark and ink/printing sequence determination.
Winner of the Fingerprint Society’s ‘Haque and Bose prize 2011’ at postgraduate level. 

Oral presentation given and workshops delivered at the International Forensic Science Conference, University of Technology, Jamaica.  January 2011.

• ‘‘In situ’ methods of latent fingermark development; An investigation into the use of a portable cyanoacrylate fuming system (SUPERfume) and aluminium powder for latent fingermark development’ (oral presentation)
  

• ‘The recovery of latent fingermarks from fire scenes’ (workshop)
  

Keynote speaker at the Forensic Science Society student conference, ‘Indelible evidence’, at the University of the West of England.  November 2009.

• ‘The importance of consistency within and between ‘fingerprint’ research projects.’

Oral and poster presentations given, and workshops delivered at the International Forensic Science Conference, University of Mauritius.  November 2009.

• ‘The importance of consistency within and between ‘fingerprint’ research projects.’

• ‘The recovery of latent fingermarks from fire scenes’

•  ‘Consistency and reproducibility in fingermark deposition’

•  ‘An investigation into the use of a portable cyanoacrylate fuming system (SUPERfume) and aluminium powder for the development of latent fingermarks’

•  'Determination of the sequence of latent marks and writing or printing on suspect documents'

Fieldhouse, S.  A comparison of fingermark deposition methodologies.  Fingerprint Whorld, April 2011 37 (143) p94-101.

Fieldhouse, S., 2011.  Consistency and reproducibility in fingermark deposition.  Forensic Science International.  207 (2011) 96-100.

Fieldhouse, S., Kalantzis, N., Platt, A.W., 2011.  Determination of the sequence of latent fingermarks and writing or printing on white office paper.  Forensic Science International.  206 (1-3) p155-160.

Fieldhouse, S.  An Investigation into the use of a portable cyanoacrylate fuming system (SUPERfume®) and aluminium powder for the development of latent fingermarks.  Journal of Forensic Sciences, accepted October 2010.