How to Lift a FingerPrint

The materials needed to lift a fingerprint are black fingerprint powder, a small soft brush, clear tape and a white evidence card. To begin the lifting process powder must be applied to

the brush. To apply powder to the brush a dabbing motion is used to collect the powder on the brush. Lightly shake the brush to remove any access powder before applying to the fingerprint. Next is applying the powder to the finger print. The most basic technique is twirling, in this technique the brush is lightly placed over the finger print and is spun to cover the print in the black powder. When the print is covered evenly with the black powder it should be visible to the naked eye. Once visible the next step is placing the tape on the fingerprint. Gently place the clear tape over the finger print, and remove the tape from the surface. The print should appear on the tape if done correctly. The final step is placing the tape with the finger print on the evidence card. Now that the finger print is lifted it is able to be used as evidence in a crime scene or inmate processing.