Uncovering crime Fingerprinting computer helps police crack cases By Chad Lorenz Senior Reporter Crimes that might have remained unsolved can now be cracked wide open by Lincoln police with the help of a fingerprinting computer. Gene Rauscher, coordinator of the Lincoln Police Department’s identifi cation lab, said since its arrival last August, the computer had matched 70 prints to help solve crimes. Before getting the computer, po lice kept ink-pressed fingerprints on thousands of cards labeled with the owners’ names, Rauscher said. To find a match, police already had to know names of suspects. If there were no suspects, police had a problem. But the computer elimi nated that problem. “That’s the beauty of having the whole database — letting the elec tronics do the labor,” Rauscher said. The computer compares finger prints found at the scene of a crime with more than 145,000 sets offinger prints kept in a state-wide database, Rauscher said. The computer matches the latent prints, which criminalists digitally scan, with any other prints that share at least seven similar features such as whorls, loops, deltas and ridge end ings. Once the best match is made, the computer gives the name of the person belonging to the identified prints. The fingerprints scanned by the computer are usually better quality than those produced from ink prints, Rauscher said. The computer also magnifies and enhances the images for easier inspection, he said. “We can do some things mechani cally that we couldn’t do with the printed fingerprint,” he said. “That’s a lot of new tricks to teach to some old dogs. ” GENE RAUSCHER identification lab coordinator Rauscher said he was using prints found years ago to solve crimes still within the Nebraska statute of limita tions. Nebraska was one of the last states to catch on to computerized finger printing, Rauscher said, but waiting had an advantage. Nebraska’s system is more ad vanced than any other state law en forcement agency, he said. The sys tem cost the state $1.5 million. The computer automatically iden tifies most of the unique features of each fingerprint—intricate work usu ally done by the criminalists, Rauscher said. The computer used by LPD is one of five networked across Nebraska, he said. The Omaha police department uses one, and the state patrol uses three. Ten “livescan” units stationed at Nebraska correctional facilities re placed black ink pads and messy fin gerprint cards, Rauscher said. Correction officers now place the subject’s finger on a plate-glass scan ner, which digitizes the fingerprint and files it in the database, he said. Sometimes the prints lack quality, but Rauscher said the officers were still getting used to the new technol ogy. “That’s a lot of new tricks to teach to some old dogs.” Corrections Clarifications Because of an editing error, a news analysis in Monday’s Daily Nebraskan incorrectly stated that no planets had been found out side the solar system until this month. In October, however, scien tists announced the discovery of a planet circling the star 51 Pegasi in the constellation Pe gasus. I p When you buy a Valentine's Day personal ( $ you automatically get another personal \ } FREE (to use at any time this semester), ( } plus you will get your name entered into < I the Daily Nebraskan Valentine's Day t Sweetheart Contest < where you can win i fabulous prizes! ( i • PRIZES.... $30.00 Gift Certificate from T.G.I. Friday's Romantic Evening gift basket from The Romantic New set of Nails from Tips & Toes 3 Sweatshirts from The University Bookstore flow the 'tt'92 affacks MWi. » IP s ggllg I v Big - i^ij^ip hliH m When it comes to math, it's sink or swim. equations Fortunately, we've found a way to help you £“£*<< and handy DHH^I j: 6iconDenon< keep your head above water: the new |:nsoTt£