08/10/2022
By Karen Mullins
Please join the School of Criminology & Justice Studies in supporting Christopher Donahue for Dissertation Proposal Defense entitled, "An Analysis of Mutilated Fingerprint 'Impostors' (MFIs) and the 'Imperfect' Criminal History."
Date: Wednesday, Aug. 24
Time: 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Location: Via Zoom Meeting
Committee
- Christopher Harris
- April Pattavina
- Ronald Corbett
- James Silver
Abstract
Positive identification of offenders is a critical element of establishing the “Perfect” Offender Criminal History. There are three elements of the “Perfect” Offender Criminal History: 1) criminal charges, 2) positive identification, and 3) court disposition. The “Imperfect” Offender Criminal History is created when one of the three elements are flawed and transcribed onto the offender’s criminal history as a false positive. This proposal delves into offenders who live under assumed identities (“Impostors”). More specifically, Impostors who mutilate their fingerprints (biometric identity) to avoid identification from the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) and detection by law enforcement. Secondly, this proposal outlines the vulnerabilities of the “perfect” criminal history and implications of producing false court records. Lastly, this proposal outlines procedures for AFIS administrators to follow to detect and identify false positive records housed in the AFIS.