Page 85 - Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS)

70 AUTOMATED FINGERPRINT IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS

Primary would match one of Parke’s was when whorls appeared in all ten fingers
(32/32), or in none (1/1). 8

3.6.3 FILING SYSTEMS

The classification process used determined where the card would be physically
filed, with similarly classified cards housed together. The SID number provided
a second control on the card, but the cards were filed based completely on clas-
sification. Identification sections would have at least two fingerprint files: a
master fingerprint file and a secondary file. The master file held one tenprint
card per individual. Usually this was the first or original tenprint card, the
card to which the SID number was assigned. If the subject was subsequently
fingerprinted, such as due to a re-arrest, that card would end up in the
secondary file.
Because the master fingerprint file contained only one tenprint record per
individual, the files were uniform and relatively easy to work with. The SID
number indicated the location of the card in the secondary file, i.e., in the
manual filing systems, the tenprint cards were filed by classification. In the semi-
automated systems, the tenprint cards could be filed by SID number. The sec-
ondary file might have the same numbering sequence but required more space.
These files contained not only subsequent tenprint cards but also other infor-
mation such as mug shots and dispositions.
As the SID numbers were assigned, special number ranges might be reserved
for special uses, such as for juveniles. Juveniles arrested for fingerprintable
offenses have a higher percentage of records that are subsequently sealed by
court order. Assigning these records to a unique location made it easier to find
and remove the physical card as well as the electronic Rap Sheet.
Fingerprint cards were stored in various types of filing cabinets (see Fig. 3.5),
including specialized rotary files that would move a tray of cards into a hori-
zontal position for easier access. Physical cards required tremendous account-
ability for the location of the card. If the card was removed from the file, a
marker would be inserted in its place. This marker, usually of a similar paper
stock, documented who took the card, where it was, and when it would return.
The cards themselves, being a paper product, were subject to fire, heat, humid-
ity, and other environmental factors. They often became torn and worn.
Imagine clerical staff spending a career in this environment. Each
staff member had to learn how to find a particular card in the maze of filing
cabinets. They would follow certain procedures for card retrieval and were

8 From “Origins of the New York State Bureau of Identification,” by Michael Harling, http://
www.correctionhistory.org/html/chronicl/dcjs/html/nyidbur3.html.