The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1934-01-23

Finger Print Expert Roy Ham,
lin, discredits the skin grating
propaganda entirely, and has the
following to say on the subject:
For the past several months /
have been reading the newspapers
and magazines, and seeing that
they were trying to impress the
public that finger print identifi-
cation method was about to be en-
dangered by skin grating, could
not let such an insult to the pro-
fession as this go unchallenged.
Ever so often, somebody, for
lack Of something better to do,
has a brainstorm about finger
print Identification. A few years
ago a book was published by an
ex-convict entitled Finger Prints
Can Be Forged" This book at
tracted much attention through
the country, naturally. as it has
long been taken for granted that
the finger print system of iden-
LITIGATION is the safest, quickest,
and most positive method of iden-
LITIGATION known to human science.
The method outlined for "forg-
ing finger prints" alleged that skin
could be grated from any indivi-
duaL;to a known criminals finger
tips permitting him to escape
identification after arrest. Much
to the sorrow of the author of this
book it did not take long to ex-
plod9 this theory: Various expert
ments proved that any such
grating of skin" would cause
those tiny pores to cease function
ing. These tiny sweat pores
number into thousands in each
finger and no two of them are
exactly identical in shape or size.
This kind of a forgery" there
fore, was readily detected under
an ordinary glass such as is used
in classifying finger prints with
out the necessity of even resort
ing to the use of a microscope.
Now comes a story that is pur-
ported to have originated in Chi
cago, that the finger print identi-
fication is believed to be endan-
gered through skin operations by
one Jack Klutas, reputed leader
of gang. Klutas is supposed to
have had his finger prints changed
(by skin grafting) and his visage
married to make Identification diff
ficult.
The big joke back of it all, is
that no one yet has proved that
Jack Klutas had his finger prints
operated on. The whole thing is
merely a rumor, a ruse that they
think will discredit finger print
ing. / will wager that Jack Klutas
never has and never will have his
finger tips grated" He knows
that he will lose far more than he
will ever gain. Even if it could
be done successfully, what would
it accomplish? Nothing-except
to mark himself, more than ever,
as a criminal of the worst type.
No gangster would do that.
Although word comes from DR..
Leonardo Keller, expert at the
Northwestern University Crime
Detection Laboratory in Chicago,
that he believes that it is possible
for q criminal to change the skin
of the finger prints. thereby fur
ther defeating society's effort to
apprehend him, the best experts
of. that vicinity declare this cannot
be done successfully.
We all know that in order to
destroy a pattern completely it is
necessary to go through several
layers of skin. Now, let us take
fer granted that criminal is bold
enough to do this on all ten fin
gers. Would it be a very hard
matter to devise q system for clas-
styling and filing their palm
prints, or the ten toes of their
feet? Suppose thae they complete
ly and effectively destroy each