Plastic
A type of print that is three-dimensional
Adhesive lifter
Any variety of adhesive-coated materials or tapes used to lift fingerprints or footwear impressions.
Ballistics
Scientific study of the motion of projectiles
Stone hold
A characteristic created when a tread captures and holds a loose stone. Stone holds are considered individual characteristics.
Latent
A type of print that is not visible to the naked eye.
Class characteristic
An intentional or unavoidable characteristic
Tread
The designed part of the shoe or tire that comes into contact with the ground or road.
Lift
To transfer an impression from its original surface for the purpose of recovering it from the crime scene and for providing better contrast.
Inconclusive
A questioned impression that does not exhibit sufficient quality of information may be deemed inconclusive.
Bullet
The projectile that is expelled from a rifled firearm
Positive impression
An impression that results when a shoe or tire deposits material onto a surface.
Identification
The positive association of an impression as having been made by a single shoe, to the exclusion of all others.
Cartridge
A complete not fired round of ammunition consisting of a cartridge case, bullet, primer and smokeless powder.
Cartridge case
The container that holds the cartridge components
Firing pin/striker
The working component of a firearm that contacts the ammunition.
Land
The interior portion of a rifled barrel between two grooves
Magazine
A container for cartridges that has a spring and follower to feed those cartridges into the chamber of a firearm
Pistol
a hand gun
Revolver
Grooves in the interior of a firearm barrel to impart spin to a bullet
Slug
A term applied to a single shotshell projectile