Could a ‘non-secretor’ get away with murder?
We spend a lot of our time in schools; we also work extensively with various community groups, individuals and businesses – talking about, and demonstrating, numerous forensic techniques. And one of the areas we discuss in detail is fingerprinting.
There are hundreds of ways to capture fingerprints at a crime scene, which are influenced by such things as the surface the fingerprint is on; the condition of the print; whether it’s a full or partial print; the surroundings and atmosphere (inside or outside, for example); and many other things.
But if someone is a non-secretor (non-secretors make up between 15% and 25% of the population), though they may leave some semblance of a fingerprint behind, there’s usually not enough DNA/information within it to identify the criminal. So, does this mean they could they get away with murder…?!