The Myth of Fingerprints: A forensic science stands trial

Are fingerprints really unique? Or, more importantly, can fraction of a print from the scene of a crime reliably be used to identify a single suspect? I have wondered about this question, and was pleased to find that I'm not alone. This excerpt from a forthcoming book, "Suspect Identities: A History of Fingerprinting and Criminal Investigation" to be published in spring, 2001 by Harvard University Press discusses the science and the law of fingerprint identification. I found it fascinating, and you can read it online (at least for awhile). [Sadly, this fine magazine went out of business in 2001.]