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How A Set Of Doppelgangers Revolutionized Prison System Policies
The arrests of Will and William West were the catalysts for the evolution of identification
When you think of someone going to jail, the first things that come to mind are typically, handcuffs, mugshots, and fingerprinting.
Fingerprinting is a tool that has solved tens of thousands of crimes, resulted in the arrest of thousands of offenders, and even exonerated some who were innocent.
It’s hard to imagine crime scene investigation and confirming one’s identity without fingerprints. They are even now used as biometric IDs to gain access to electronic devices and accounts.
A Historical Practice
It’s believed that fingerprinting has occurred since the age of the Egyptians, but the first documentation of using fingerprints as a method of identification came in 1880. Dr. Henry Faulds, a Scottish doctor publish an article in the scientific journal, “Nature”.
He examined fingerprints and their value, as they could be used to conclusively identify an individual. Using fingerprints for law enforcement purposes really took off in the 1890s.
