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Forensic Database Research Paper

Decent Essays

Erin Connors
Mrs. Gilvin
Forensics B4
Oct. 20, 2016

Forensic Database Research Paper Forensic scientists and investigators need to use databases to quickly store and organize information. The use of these databases allows information about criminals to be stored and easily accessed, so investigators can identify whoever committed the crime. The NIBIN, IAFIS, and CODIS databases are some of the tools widely used and available to forensic scientists. NIBIN, or the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, allows prompt and easy identification of ballistics information from across the country (ATF.) It was formed in the 1990’s in conjunction with law enforcement and is run under the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF.) The program is able to automate ballistics evaluations, a process that previously took a lot longer. Cartridge casing evidence is entered into NIBIN, which then allows the data unique to each bullet to be compared against other bullets to find a common perpetrator (ATF.) The network is largely used by law enforcement, …show more content…

The IAFIS, or the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System, is run by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and headed by David Cuthbertson and the Criminal Justice Information Services Division (FBI.) The FBI has collected fingerprints since 1924, and, in 1999, fingerprint identification was digitalized so fingerprints from criminals, government workers, and military workers, among others, could be identified and shared more easily (FBI.) The database is able to identify fingerprint characteristics and compare them with other individuals who share a lot of the unique features between fingerprints (FBI.) There is a lot of information about criminals on their database: their fingerprint, their criminal history, and their photograph (FBI.) Law enforcement, from the state to national level, use IAFIS to compare fingerprints found at crime scenes to fingerprints from all around the country

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