Fingerprint evidence is used to solve a British murder case

The neighbors of Thomas and Ann Farrow, shopkeepers in South London, discover their bodies in their home. Thomas was already dead, but Ann was still breathing. She died four days later without ever having regained consciousness. The brutal crime was solved using the newly developed fingerprinting technique. Only three years earlier, the first English court had admitted fingerprint evidence in a petty theft case. The Farrow case was the first time that the cutting-edge technology was used in a high-profile murder case.

Since the cash box in which the Farrows stored their cash receipts was empty, it was clear to Scotland Yard investigators that robbery was the motive for the crime. One print on the box did not match the victims or any of the still-tiny file of criminal prints that Scotland Yard possessed. Fortunately, a local milkman reported seeing two young men in the vicinity of the Farrow house on the day of the murders. Soon identified as brothers Alfred and Albert Stratton, the police began interviewing their friends.

Alfred's girlfriend told police that he had given away his coat and changed the color of his shoes the day after the murders. A week later, authorities finally caught up with the Stratton brothers and fingerprinted them. Alfred's right thumb was a perfect match for the print on the Farrow's cash box.

The fingerprint evidence became the prosecution's only solid evidence when the milkman was unable to positively identify the Strattons. The defense put up expert Dr. John Garson to attack the reliability of the fingerprint evidence. But the prosecution countered with evidence that Garson had written to both the defense and prosecution on the same day offering his services to both.

The Stratton brothers, obviously not helped by the discrediting of Garson, were convicted and hanged on May 23, 1905. Since then, fingerprint evidence has become commonplace in criminal trials and the lack of it is even used by defense attorneys.

Notes:

cutting-edge — передовой, современный

high-profile — привлекающий внимание, заметный, выдающийся

to catch up (with) — настигать

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

1. Who found the bodies?

2. What was the motive for the crime?

3. What technology was used to solve the crime?

4. Where were strange fingerprints found?

5. What did Alfred's girlfriend tell police?

6. How were criminals identified?

Task 4. Study the information below and give your opinion on the problem of DNA evidence.

Genetic fingerprinting

Genetic fingerprinting is a technique developed in the UK by Professor Alec Jeffreys and now allowed as a means of legal identification. It determines the pattern of certain parts of the genetic material DNA that is unique to each individual. Like conventional fingerprinting, it can accurately distinguish humans from one another, with the exception of identical siblings from multiple births. It can be applied to as little material as a single cell.

Genetic fingerprinting involves isolating DNA from cells, then comparing and contrasting the sequences of component chemicals between individuals. The DNA pattern can be ascertained from a sample of skin, hair, blood, or semen.

Genetic fingerprinting was first allowed as a means of legal identification at a court in Britain 1987. It is used in paternity testing (from 1988), forensic medicine, and inbreeding studies. The world's first national DNA database began operating in the UK April 1995.