JFI
See Journal of Forensic Identification.
JFS
Journal of Forensic Sciences. Published by the American Academy of Forensic Sciences.
Jennings (People vs. Jennings, Illinois, 1910)
The first State Supreme Court case to uphold the admissibility of fingerprint evidence. Dec. 21,
1911, The Illinois State Supreme Court upheld the admissibility of fingerprint evidence concluding
that fingerprints are a reliable form of identification.
Jennings, Thomas
Thomas Jennings was the first person to be convicted of murder in the United States based on
fingerprint evidence. In 1911, Jennings appealed his conviction to the Illinois Supreme Court,
questioning the admissibility of fingerprint evidence. The Illinois Supreme Court upheld his
conviction concluding that fingerprint evidence is admissible and a reliable form of identification.
Thomas Jennings was sentenced to death and executed on Feb. 16, 1912 for the murder of
Clarence B. Hiller.
Mary Holland, Michael P. Evans, William M. Evans, and Edward Foster were the four fingerprint
experts that testified at Jennings original trial.
Jennings, William Nicholson (1860-1946)
William Jennings is credited with being the first person in the United States to record his own
palm prints years apart to test their persistency. After hearing a lecture at the Franklin Institute in
Philadelphia in 1887 he recorded his prints. In 1937 he again recorded his prints and saw they
did not change. Jennings did not publish either of the recordings until 1939. An interesting side
note is that this was Jennings only connection to the fingerprint industry. Jennings was an
internationally known photographer famous for being the first person to photograph lightning.
Joiner
See General Electric Co.
Joint
The hinged area where two bones are joined together.
The hinged area that separates segments of the finger.
SWGFAST, Standard Terminology of Friction Ridge Examination 3-23-11 ver. 3.0
Jorgensen Classification System
A fingerprint classification system for single fingerprints used in the early 1900’s.
Journal of Forensic Identification
A peer review journal produced by the International Association of Identification and published
from 1988 until the present.
Justification
Good justification behind a conclusion strengthens the integrity of the conclusion which in turn
improves the weight of a conclusion.