Feral Jundi

   Now this is neat. Dr. Bond has developed a technique to lift finger prints off of shell casings, even if they were wiped clean or old.  The oils or acids on the finger, do their thing to the casing, and it acts like metal etching in a way.  Bond’s technique is to be able to bring out the etching.

   So what does that mean in the grand scheme of things?  Old cases, that had just bullet casings left over, will be brought forward and re-examined.  In war zones, we could track the enemy by the prints they leave on casings.  Better yet, if a contractor was in a shooting, and they were able to go back to the scene and find any enemy shell casings, they could prove they were fired upon by a specific individual, based on the prints lifted.

   This is really applicable now that we are implementing biometrics to COIN operations.  We are using finger printing machines and eye scanners to identify everyone in a combat zone.  Doom on you if you are an insurgent trying to hide amongst the population, because we can now connect shell casings to you.  And seeing how this technique just came out within the last year or so, it will be interesting how far they are taking this.

   What is really cool though, is if they could lift prints off of shrapnel?  That means anyone that touched the metal of an IED, could potentially be called out or added to a matrix of intel, all based on the fingerprints lifted. Even suicide bombers that have blown up, could have the metal components on their system tested.

   Also, if the lawyers for the Blackwater Five are reading this (Nisour Square), then you need to look into grabbing any of the shell casings taken from scene, and lifting some finger prints.  Or even the bullets in bodies could be used. Interesting stuff. –Matt

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Bullets hold the key in Bond’s unique view to a kill

Michael Pollitt

Thursday 5 February 2009

Detective Garrie Dorman wants to find a killer. He travelled from Connecticut last week to ask Dr John Bond, scientific support manager for Northamptonshire police and honorary research fellow at the University of Leicester Forensic Research Centre, for help. Bond again successfully used a pioneering technique (Forensic science‘s magic bullet, 28 August 2008) to recover fingerprints from shell casings.

Dorman is the latest American visitor to Bond’s laboratory. The victim in his case was a businessman, Louis “Pete” LaFontaine, found shot dead in his home in Bristol, Connecticut, in February 1998. “The Bristol police have conducted an extensive investigation, but the murder remains unsolved,” says Dorman.

Although perhaps not for much longer. Bond’s technique relies on fingerprint sweat changing the surface properties of shell casings. By applying a high voltage and a fine carbon powder, the original fingerprint pattern is revealed – even decades after the gun was fired.

“What we tend to find is a partial fingerprint. That’s partly due to the initial small area of contact between the finger and shell case because the shell case has a very tight radius,” says Bond. “While that sort of return sounds very small, when it works people are extremely grateful.”

Bond spent hours working with the evidence brought over by Dorman. Fortunately for the murder investigation, he found several fingerprints that “the detective is very pleased with”.

Bond has now examined 178 shell casings from 36 crimes, including five from the UK. As the corrosion effect is resistant to cleaning, age doesn’t matter and, remarkably, he’s already found a 30-year-old fingerprint. “Nine crimes have produced casings with fingerprints, and five of these have the potential to identify an offender. The others could be used to eliminate suspects,” he adds.

US interest in Bond’s work remains high, although UK police forces are hesitant. He’s now looking at fingerprint recovery off shrapnel from improvised explosive devices. “After your piece [in the Guardian] last summer, we did have a conversation with the US military in Afghanistan and are now collaborating with one of the national laboratories in the US to provide us with material.”

The project with the prestigious Oak Ridge National Laboratory – looking at test shrapnel and corrosion chemistry – will be challenging. So what’s next for Bond? With his invention already described by Time magazine as one of the top 50 of 2008, he’d now like it to be the key to a murder conviction, proving his amazing technique beyond all doubt.

Story here.