Page 93 - Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS)

78 AUTOMATED FINGERPRINT IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS

unacceptable, or the record is unacceptable, the inquiring agency is instructed
to resubmit the record. Correcting the problem may require re-rolling the
subject, completing all mandatory fields, retransmission, etc.
The arrest data is separated and sent to the CCH system to initiate the iden-
tification process. The individual fingerprints and the plain impressions are
displayed on an AFIS workstation screen. A fingerprint technician then per-
forms a number of operations, including validation of finger placement, image
quality checking, pattern assignment, and image centering. The arrest trans-
action is entered into an updated and improved AFIS for searching against the
state fingerprint database. Typically the two index fingers are searched,
although some agencies may choose two other fingers, such as thumbs, or four
fingers (index and thumbs) to improve the likelihood of making an identifi-
cation.
The minutiae of the finger image characteristics are identified by the coder
and the search is initiated. Possible matching images are presented on the com-
puter screen next to the submitted image in a side-by-side format, as seen in
Figure 4.4.
Candidates produced by AFIS may be confirmed by a verification/validation
process. State identification results are electronically returned to the local
police agency, including any criminal history and, if available, a mug shot. The
rap sheets are mailed to those agencies not electronically connected to the
AFIS.
In the past, arrest transactions were sent by mail to the FBI’s Integrated Auto-
mated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS). It could take weeks to receive
a response, and often the subject had long since left the area by the time the
response was received. As more agencies adopt National Institute of Standards
and Technology (NIST) transmission standards and the FBI transmission spec-
ifications, electronic forwarding is quickly becoming the preferred method.
By electronically accessing the IAFIS, local agencies are able to determine if
a subject has a criminal history in another state. More importantly, the agency
can determine if the subject is currently wanted in another state. Why is this
information considered by some to be the most important part of arrest pro-
cessing? A search of the state database produces a criminal history record for
that state only. If this is the first time that the subject has been arrested or
fingerprinted in the state, there would be no criminal history on file. It may
be that the subject has provided his or her true name and has no criminal past,
but a check of the IAFIS and Interstate Identification Index (III) may show that
the subject has a record in another state, under a different name, and that there
is an outstanding arrest warrant. Without this information the subject might
have been released on bail based on only the original arrest. With this new
information about the subject’s criminal history, he or she will be held until a