The Walker Bullet
On April 10, 1963, a severely mutilated bullet weighing 148.25 grains was recovered from General Walker’s home after an attempt on his life. The bullet displayed the rifling characteristics of the C2766 rifle and otherwise matched the Western 6.5-millimeter Mannlicher-Carcano bullet, but Frazier concluded that the mutilation prevented a determination of whether it had been fired from that rifle. Nicol agreed that positive identification was impossible but concluded there was “a fair probability” the bullet came from the same rifle as the test bullets.
FINGERPRINTS AND PALMPRINTS
Two fingerprint and palmprint experts testified: Sebastian Latona, supervisor of the FBI’s Latent Fingerprint Section with over 32 years of experience, and Arthur Mandella, a New York City police detective and fingerprint instructor with 19 years in the field. Both had extensive examination and courtroom experience, and their conclusions were identical except as noted in the chapter.
General Principles
Fingerprints and palmprints are produced by permanent ridges that appear 2–3 months before birth and remain unchanged until death; a clear impression contains 85 to 125 identifiable points, and no two prints share the same points in the same relationships. Law-enforcement “inked prints” are carefully taken, while prints accidentally left at crime scenes are “latent prints,” and identification requires finding no inconsistencies between latent and inked prints and sufficient similarity in points and their relative positions. While some foreign agencies require a minimum of 16 matching points, U.S. experts evaluate each print on its own merits with no fixed minimum. Palmprints are equally distinctive but are recorded less often because they are harder to classify, though they are common on heavy objects. Latent prints arise from perspiration (water, fatty or protein material, and salt) and can be developed by lighting, powder, or lifting with adhesive; absorbent surfaces like paper, unfinished wood, or unfinished metal usually require iodine fumes or silver nitrate solution to develop prints. Not every contact leaves a latent print, since smooth nonabsorbent surfaces, lack of perspiration, or evaporation can prevent a print from forming.
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