Increasing efficiency in the criminal justice system

The use of new technology for criminal identification and latent print processing

Joseph A. Ratkovic

Expert InsightsPublished 1980

The criminal identification problem requires a suspect to be positively identified at the time of arrest. This process involves taking fingerprints of a suspect and checking them against local, state, and federal files. The paper examines systems for improving the processing of identification and latent prints and concludes that it is possible to significantly enhance the ability to apprehend wanted criminals and identify suspects in unsolved crimes. The use of electronic image correlation is the key to the development of a new generation of automated processing systems. Such imagery affords the capability to (1) rapidly communicate prints to speed the identification process, (2) improve the speed and reliability of the matching process, and (3) expedite the verification process via electronic displays and image processing. Organizational, political, and social constraints are examined to ensure total system feasibility.

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Ratkovic, Joseph A., Increasing efficiency in the criminal justice system: The use of new technology for criminal identification and latent print processing. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1980. https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P6546.html.
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