ABSTRACT
Courts and commentators question not only the conventional wisdom that fingerprint analysis provides a fail-safe method of identification but also the methods by which law enforcement agencies acquire and organize fingerprint databases. As fingerprint analysis gained acceptance, its proponents made great efforts to repudiate reports that fingerprints held additional information, for example, a propensity for deviant behavior. Recognizing the trend of accepting fingerprint analysis in the courtroom, law enforcement agencies started to compile databases containing fingerprints for future analysis. Criticism is also aimed at the collection and use of fingerprints by government agencies. Washington, D.C., the United States has adopted a policy of fingerprinting foreign travelers to the country, raising further concerns about civil liberties and discrimination. Some police cruisers are outfitted with onboard digital scanners that can automatically read an arrestee's fingerprints and immediately scan existing databases for a match.
