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United States v. Scott

United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 23720 (2010)

Facts

Varian Scott (defendant) was charged with forging prescriptions for medications. The police seized prescription pads that contained fraudulent prescriptions. There were unknown fingerprints on the prescription pads. At the trial, the government (plaintiff) sought to introduce expert testimony from Jessica LeCroy, a fingerprint examiner. In order to identify the fingerprints on the prescription pads, LeCroy used the ACE-V procedure. The ACE-V procedure allowed an examiner to compare a fingerprint from an unknown person (a latent print) with a fingerprint from a known person (an inked print). Specifically, the examiner determined whether the latent print and the inked print shared characteristics. Based on the number of shared characteristics, the examiner expressed an opinion as to whether there was a match between the latent print and the inked print. Hence, the ACE-V procedure followed a formal, established methodology. Additionally, the ACE-V procedure was generally accepted within the community of fingerprint experts. LeCroy testified that, in her opinion, the fingerprints on the prescription pads matched Scott’s fingerprints. The district-court judge admitted LeCroy’s opinion. Subsequently, Scott was convicted. Scott appealed.

Rule of Law

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Issue

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Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)

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A summary of the majority or plurality opinion, using the CREAC method; and
The procedural disposition (e.g., reversed and remanded, affirmed, etc.).

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