Opinion ID: 202283
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Plumb's Expert Testimony on Fingerprint Comparison

Text: 33 García contends that the district court abused its discretion in permitting Agent Plumb to testify—over García's objection—as an expert with respect to fingerprint comparison. García maintains that Plumb's purported expertise was inadequate in that it rested on a mere two days of training. We disagree. 34 In essence, Plumb testified that his training in fingerprint comparison began with a 16-hour course taught by a representative of the Massachusetts Bureau of Criminal Investigations. Plumb further explained that he received a certification in fingerprint comparison after he completed the 16-hour course, that he conducted more than 80 fingerprint comparisons over the course of the next two years, that his comparisons were sometimes verified by another INS officer or by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, that the results of his comparisons had never differed from those of the person verifying his comparisons, and that he had testified as a fingerprint expert in federal court on several occasions. 35 This court may reverse the district court's decision regarding expert testimony only if the ruling was so wide of the mark as to constitute an abuse of discretion. Macaulay v. Anas, 321 F.3d 45, 51 (1st Cir.2003); see also United States v. Valle, 72 F.3d 210, 214 (1st Cir.1995) (explaining that the trial court has discretion to admit or reject expert testimony and its determination is reviewable only for an abuse of that discretion). Here, there was no abuse of discretion. To be sure, some experts are more qualified than others, and Plumb—in his capacity as a law enforcement officer—may not have had the same expertise as someone whose sole occupation is to compare latent prints. Plumb's training and experience were sufficient, however, to permit the district court, in its discretion, to admit Plumb's testimony. It was up to the jury to weigh that testimony, given what the jurors heard on direct and cross-examination about Plumb's training and experience.