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Saanich police forensics expert invents new technique for lifting prints hidden under handwriting
William Shepherd/News staff
Saanich police forensic officer Shane Coughlan invented a new technique which allows police officers to, for instance, remove pen ink from ransom notes, while preserving the integrity of a fingerprint. Coughlan recieved an international award for his efforts.
Saanich police Const. Shane Coughlan is a problem-solver. As a longtime member of the department’s forensic identification section, he is challenged – day in and day out – with assisting in crime solving through processing of physical evidence. But sometimes his job is hampered by the limitations of known
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forensic techniques. “Several years ago we had a string of bank robberies where the hold-up note was being left behind,” Coughlan says. “My boss as the time had developed several fingerprints (off the notes), but one of them was obscured by the writing. The writing went across the middle of the fingerprint.” The chemical ninhydrin, which police departments use to locate fingerprints on paper, reacts with
the skin’s oils left behind and turns the prints purple. But that colour is difficult to distinguish from pen ink. “So I started thinking about the problem and I played around with it, and I developed a technique where I used a different chemical to fade the pen ink, but not effect the fingerprint. So you could actually see the extra detail in the fingerprint that was hidden by the writing,” Coughlan says.
The police officer spent the next couple years sharing his technique with colleagues, who eventually convinced him to formalize it by conducting scientific experiments and publishing his findings. Coughlan was published in the Journal of Forensic Identification in August 2012 after perfecting the technique. PLEASE SEE: Saanich, Victoria, Page A8
While there’s still a lot of 2013 to pack in to the final two months of the year, car manufacturers have already begun rolling out next year’s models. In Friday’s edition of Driveway our knowledgeable auto columnists will look at some of the eyecatching 2014 models that will be out on our roads in the coming year. Driveway editor Keith Morgan will picks some of his favourite higher-end vehicles: BMWs, Audis, Mercedes. (These vehicles start at $34,000.) Zack Spencer and Alexandra Straub look at vehicles that are more practical for the family lifestyle. Spencer chooses his favourite compact cars and SUVs, while Straub highlights fun and sporty cars at a price that won’t break the bank. Truck aficionado Ian Harwood, in his first appearance in Driveway, will lay out some of the best pickups on the market. And for the environmentally friendly driver, Bob McHugh introduces five new hybrids that give their gasoline counterparts a run for their money. “Go and kick some tires at a variety of dealerships and consider multiple brands because they all have much to offer,” Morgan says of the 2014 lineup. Driveway is the weekly automotive section that runs in Black Press community newspapers in B.C. editor@vicnews.com
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