The quick answer is that lawyers are not supposed to lie, but they canât necessarily prevent their clients from lying. Iâll get to the details in a minute â honestly--but first Iâm happy to tell you that the podcast version of this article is brought to you by Go To Meeting.
Fingerprints on paper, cardboard and unfinished wood can last for up to forty years (per actual casework histories) unless exposed to water (and contaminate transfer prints can even then sometimes persist).
Many factors affect the ability of obtaining DNA profile from fingerprints. The length of time the finger was held on the surface is an important factor. It was observed that if a person touched the surface for a minimum of 60 seconds, then DNA could be obtained.