Safety at their fingertips

Not one of the youngsters fingerprinted Saturday at Weil Hummer in Libertyville was a criminal.

Weil Hummer, along with other Chicago-area Hummer dealers, asked children to place their pinkies and all of their other digits on record in the name of safety.

Parents took home their children's fingerprints, digital photo, a journal and home DNA identification kit as part of the Child Safety Alliance.

"If your child was ever abducted, you could provide all this information to the authorities," said George Rauch of DNA LifePrint based in Davie, Fla. "Hopefully, you'll never have to use it. It's just a little insurance."

Parents took home a journal to complete with the child's name, birth date, address, height, weight, eye and hair color, race and blood type, along with other information. They also received a home DNA identification kit, with detailed instructions on how to use it.

"If something ever happened, it's much harder to gather this information because parents are upset," Rauch said.

To use the DNA identification kit, a parent rubs a cotton swab inside the child's cheek for five seconds and then places it in the provided vial where it can be stored for years.

The technology DNA LifePrint uses will enable a missing child's parents to submit the recorded prints into an FBI database when the missing child report is made.

When a child's fingerprints are entered into the FBI database, the fingerprints become immediately available to all law enforcement agencies nationwide, Rauch said.

This is the first time the Libertyville dealership has held a child safety event, said Bob Greene, Weil Hummer sales manager.

The Libertyville Fire Department also had its fire engine on display.

"Child safety is our priority, and the kids like to climb around the truck," said Russ Bartholomew, with the Libertyville Fire Department.