NCJ Number
175762
Journal
Criminologist Volume: 22 Issue: 3 Dated: Autumn 1998 Pages: 131-136
Date Published
1998
Length
6 pages
Annotation
After discussing communication theory and its implication for teaching and offender rehabilitation, this paper suggests some practical exercises that enhance offender communication and serve the ends of developing social cognitive skills.
Abstract
The research was restricted to the following materials due to their common association with shoe-impression evidence: glass, ceramic tile, vinyl tile, gloss-painted timber, sheet metal, and plastic. Clean and dust-covered substrate materials had wet- origin impressions made on them. All the test impressions were made with the same rubber-soled basketball shoe. After initial research, the following development and enhancement techniques were used: fingerprint powder alone; CA fuming followed by the application of fingerprint powder; CA fuming followed by the application of Rhodamine 6G; refrigeration followed by CA fuming and then the application of fingerprint powder; and refrigeration followed by CA fuming and then the application of Rhodamine 6G. The research concludes that CA fuming for wet-origin shoe impressions is a safe and effective option and may provide improvement in impression quality that could positively link a suspect to a crime scene. The procedures used were restricted to substrates that were portable and therefore capable of being returned to a laboratory. This restricts the use of the technique to portable items, unless on-scene methods such as tent fuming are adopted. 7 references