First use of fingerprint evidence from a post mortem in a criminal conviction

The first time that fingerprint evidence taken from a cadaver and used in court was in 1978, when police used black magnetic powder to lift fingerprints from the left ankle of a deceased female suspected of being sexually assaulted in North Miami Beach, Florida, USA; her dead body was one of three at the scene. The print was matched to those of a known suspect, Stephen William Beattie (USA), who was found guilty on the basis of the fingerprint evidence and sentenced to three consecutive death sentences on 1 February 1979. Beattie committed suicide in prison whilst awaiting the death penalty.