ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the ways in which criminal courts have dealt with the emergence of biometrics as a source of evidence. The main purpose in considering this kind of evidence in criminal trials and appeals is to establish the identity of either the offender or the victim. The chapter provides an insight into the trend of accepting biometric identification as a source of evidence, but with some judicial reservations about the application of particular kinds of biometrics in the criminal justice system. Biometrics provides an alternative to traditional eye witness identification. The biometrics of facial mapping and body mapping primarily involve the comparison of still images in order to determine likely identity, typically between an image taken from a crime scene and a comparable image depicting a criminal defendant. Fingerprinting has been routinely used by police in criminal investigations since the beginning of the 1900s. Identification using deoxyribonucleic acid is generally regarded as more discriminating than any other biometric method.
