Experimental fingerprint test can distinguish between those who have taken or handled cocaine

University of Surrey. "Experimental fingerprint test can distinguish between those who have taken or handled cocaine." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 6 February 2020. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200206080453.htm>. 

This article titled, “Experimental fingerprint test can distinguish between those who have taken or handled cocaine” published by the University of Surrey discusses a series of experimental tests carried out by the University in their initiative to make fingerprints indicative of possession or consumption of the class A drug, cocaine. Obviously, it is crucial to be able to distinguish whether someone consumed the drug or was just handling it as they have different implications in the eyes of the law but previously the only way to really be sure if the drug was present in someone’s system would be to run tests. This new concept can tell investigators if it was handled or consumed using a single fingerprint. The researchers conducted these tests at a drug rehabilitation clinic and asked all patients whether or not they had consumed or come into contact with cocaine. Participants then washed their hands thoroughly before giving a second set of prints. These types of tests have been in use since 2017 using experimental high-resolution mass spectrometry techniques for fingerprint-based drug screening. 

This article is important to the study of forensic science because it can be very difficult to detect certain drugs when first encountering a suspicious individual without running more in-depth tests but this new and improved fingerprinting method could be extremely influential in stopping drug users. Dr. Min Jang, one of the experts quoted in the article stated regarding the new innovation, “A fingerprint is a great way to test for drugs as it is so quick and efficient to collect. Using our methodology, it is possible to analyze a fingerprint sample for drugs in less than 2 minutes.” Furthermore, it has become more apparent that drugs are getting easier to disguise in our system making it appear as if individuals test negative so hopefully these fingerprint-based tests can help catch people using this illicit substance and others in the future. 

Overall, I thought this was a very informative article that outlined the way these new fingerprint-based tests work to detect individuals who have either handled or consumed cocaine. I also think the research made sure to test various situations including after individuals have washed their hands which allows the results to appear much more full-proof. While I understand this was a research-based article aimed at providing an overview of the new tests, I would have liked to read more about some of the areas the test may not work and plans for expanding the fingerprint method to work with other drugs in the future.