Juries in Illinois and other states have been asked to measure the reliability of latent fingerprint evidence for decades. Latent fingerprints are collected samples of hidden fingerprints in a crime scene. Examiners use them to relate with those that are known to come from recognized sources. Forensic science is crucial in examining crime and assisting in the verdict for innocence or guilt at court hearings.
Questions concerning the sufficiency of several forensic subjects are arising daily. In 2009, a report was issued by the National Research Council that claimed that most latent fingerprint analyses were scientifically unjustified. It also said that some forensic disciplines had no credibility at all.
However, many reports still regard it as scientific injustice. In 2016, a group working on latent fingerprint analysis concluded that the forensics were not justified. The groups say that such assertions have brought false convictions and arrests. The American Association for the Advancement of Science made conclusions in a report. They said latent fingerprint examiners should stop claiming concealed fingerprints come from one source. Furthermore, they should particularly stop saying they could prove as much without errors.