Court Opinion

ID: 9571233
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 20:30:02.520476+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:29:57.250506
License: Public Domain

Justice Mitchell
dissenting.
The majority holds that the defendant demonstrated at trial that a fingerprint expert appointed at public expense would be of material assistance to him in preparing his defense, and that the trial court, therefore, erred in failing to appoint one. Although many types of experts will be of material assistance to an indigent defendant in preparing his case and should be appointed by the trial court in proper situations, I have previously explained to the best of my ability:
The taking and analysis of fingerprints is largely a mechanical function, although admittedly one which requires some training and experience. Basically, the analysis of fingerprints involves comparing the latent print taken from the scene of the crime with a known print of the defendant to determine whether there are points of similarity. Once a given number of points of similarity are observed, the expert draws the conclusion that the two prints were made by the same person.
It has been my experience that all of the steps involved in fingerprint analysis can be readily demonstrated to a jury in such a manner that the jurors are able to determine for themselves whether the points of similarity are in fact similar. Likewise, the jurors are as capable as the expert of counting the number of points of similarity. There simply is nothing so mysterious or difficult about fingerprint analysis and comparison as to prevent the ordinary lay juror from determining *535whether the procedure has been performed correctly and the expert has reached the right conclusion, once the technique is explained and pointed out to the juror. For this reason, a defendant can properly defend himself against such evidence— if in fact he will ever be able to defend himself — by the simple expedient of thorough cross-examination of the State’s fingerprint witness. See State v. Corbett, 307 N.C. 169, 297 S.E.2d 553.
State v. Moore, 321 N.C. 327, 348-49, 364 S.E.2d 648, 659 (1988) (Mitchell, J., concurring in result, joined by Meyer, J.).
The lesson for our trial judges from the majority’s holdings in this case and the Moore case is that they must appoint fingerprint experts at public expense to assist indigent defendants in all cases in which the State relies upon fingerprint evidence and there were no eyewitnesses to the crime for which the defendant is charged. Perhaps this would be a desirable result in an ideal world. Given the limited financial resources available to our courts, however, the appointment of experts to aid criminal defendants in preparing a defense should be reserved for those cases in which it is reasonably likely to be necessary to ensure that the defendant receives a fair trial. In my view, this clearly is not such a case.
I dissent from the majority’s holding that the trial court erred in failing to appoint a fingerprint expert and that the defendant must have a new trial as a result.