Page 8 - April 2017

UNIT PROFILE
State IDentification Section

The State ID Section is the fingerprint criminal • To assist state and national latent print
history repository for the Commonwealth of and crime screen investigations. In 2016,
Massachusetts. Fingerprints and related criminal Massachusetts latent examiners performed
history record information (CHRI) are critical to 12,955 latent print searches using the state AFIS
assist law enforcement and criminal justice agencies and FBI databases. These searches resulted
in criminal investigations and decision-making. If in 2,587 “hits.” Additional hits were made by
fingerprints are not submitted for direct comparison to suspect ten
arrest events, the state fingerprint print fingerprint records.
repository database and CHRI is
incomplete. In 2016, 130,000
Criminal fingerprint records were
added to the state criminal history • To support the positive
files. identification of offenders that enter
the Massachusetts court system
The following are key uses of and files frequently referred to as
fingerprints and related CHRI: the BOP. The Executive Office of
the Trial Courts (EOTC), SIS and the
Department of Criminal Justice
• To contribute to the Federal Systems advocate for fingerprints
Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to support all arrest events. The
Interstate Identification Index Offense Based Tracking Number
(III) and Next Generation (OBTN) generated at booking links
Identification (NGI) systems, a fingerprint submission to court
which facilitates positive arraignment data maintained by
criminal identification at the state and national EOTC in the Mass Courts application. This
levels, enhances national security, identifies linking will allow the Commonwealth to have a
persons prohibited from firearm purchases fully fingerprint supported criminal history.
and National Sex Offender Registry (NSOR)
compliance requirements. The current BOP is
not a national database. As an additional note, all law enforcement officers can
view the State fingerprint records and mugshots using
the AFISR application. AFISR is accessible through
the CJIS Single Sign On application. Using AFISR, an
• To support state and national background authorized user can search records by name, OBTN or
checks including law enforcement and criminal other search fields.
justice employment, applicants working in
positions with vulnerable populations, such In addition to fingerprints, the SIS and the AFIS system
as children, the elderly, or disabled, as well as, receives and retains additional biometrics such as
other authorized purposes including gaming, palmprints, mugshots and iris submissions. The
civil bylaws and firearms licensing. The BOP is SIS has also begun testing mobile ID devices, which
not searched for national record checks since it capture two fingers and which can return identity
is not fingerprint supported. verification in less than 60 seconds.

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