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Why are mugshots made public before the suspect is convicted by the court?

Several reasons.

  1. Mugshots can help find people when they have absconded, or warn people when someone is out and dangerous. So there is a good reason to share some mugshots.
  2. Our legal system requires openness as per the federal constitution, and I imagine most if not all state constitutions. As such, this sort of information is not considered private and can be shared. Any effort to keep mug shots private would result in lawsuits by the press and lay people. This would be under the First and Sixth amendments as well as the various Freedom of Information Acts. However, in 2016 a federal court ruled that federal mugshots are no longer routinely available under the federal FOIA. This is partially in recognition of the damage that mugshots can do online. In its opinion, the court noted that, “[a] disclosed booking photo casts a long, damaging shadow over the depicted individual.” The court specifically mentions websites that put mugshots online, in its analysis. “In fact, mug-shot websites collect and display booking photos from decades-old arrests: BustedMugshots and JustMugshots, to name a couple.” Some states have passed or are looking to pass laws to prevent release of mugshots prior to conviction. New Jersey, is one example.

    1. As the federal court recognizes, and as we all know, the reality is that if your picture in a mug shot is out there, regardless of whether you were convicted, it can have an unfortunate impact on your life. In the old days, this wasn’t too much of a problem because it really wasn’t easy to find mugshots. Now, with companies allegedly seeking to extort people into paying to get their images off the web, it has become a serious problem. Those companies may get in trouble if it can be proved that they are working in concert, getting paid to take the picture off one site and then putting it on another. But that is rare. In most cases, the picture is just public data to which there is no right of privacy under the law.
    2. The underlying purpose of publicity is to avoid the government charging people and abusing the authority to do so. It was believed that the publicity would help protect people. And it does when you have a country that likes to hide what it is up to. But, it also can cause harm in a modern society like ours, where such things end up on the web and can cause permanent damage. Unfortunately, it is a bit of a catch 22. We have the right to know issues and free speech rights smack up against privacy rights and serious damage of reputation for people who have not been convicted of a crime. The law will no doubt continue to shake out over the next few years as it struggles to catch up with the technology.

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Эта информация была изначально размещена на Quora. Нажмите здесь, чтобы перейти к оригинальному посту.

Have you ever wondered about it? Do you think it's acceptable to post photos of people before the court announce them guilty?

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Что вы думаете по этому поводу?
21 Comments
Janette Will
An interesting article. However, in Australia 🇦🇺 photos of people alleged to have committed crimes are usually not released until the person has been convicted. This is done to protect the persons privacy and to uphold the rule of law that says a person is innocent until proven guilty. It is also considered that publishing photos of an alleged criminal could prejudice their ability to have a fair trial.
19
31.10.2018 04:33
Pamela Spallin
I don’t agree that mugshots should be made public you could ruin an innocent persons life forever especially with the technology todayn
13
26.09.2018 10:06
Jane Elise Naylor
This is about the USA, not the same everywhere in the World!!!
6
15.01.2019 06:04
dmarkc
So mugshots may cause damage in federal cases, but not municipal cases. Now that sounds more like the government speak we all know and love.
0
02.10.2024 09:51
Louella Wilson
Question should have included in the USA. Then starting with "Our legal system requires openness as per the federal constitution". It is not a universal practice. This is yet another example on this site of obvious US bias.
1
01.08.2024 10:28
hoke garnto
A person is considered innocent until proven guilty, therefore a person mugshot should not be public information until that person is convicted and proven guilty in a court of law, But this is just my opinion.
3
09.09.2022 09:06
Julie Allen
Laura Urrutia, They have to live somewhere and it's always going to be near someone's house.
1
04.07.2022 08:01
jack patti go
Who knows! I have never been arrested, but if I had, I wouldn't want my picture plastered anywhere!
2
11.09.2019 08:37
Russ Dobell
Not All "Mugshots" are released, example, No Juvenile fotos are shown publicly, or most accused "Child Molesters" prior to conviction, nor anyone accused of treason.
1
09.03.2019 06:13
Rob Bowman
Interesting people you Americans and your beloved constitution, if only you could think outside that box you might realise it is not as great as it is made out to be,
0
31.12.2018 07:49
Barb Beck
Barry Wade, It is a coming. He is running scared and is trying to outsmart Mueller. I don't think he can....if nothingf happens to him, our justice system will be for naught.
3
19.12.2018 10:58
Judy Wilson
Yes, this was a very interesting article.
1
09.12.2018 06:53
ninakamwene
Interesting. Thank you.
0
15.10.2018 12:08
Laura Urrutia
Even you can look it up sex offense. I was shocked to see that some of near by my house.
0
01.10.2018 05:53
Conrado De Leon
In my part of the world, mjug shots were asked to be shown in every paper, son people would recognise a crook. Then, some "human rights" scoundrel sued, claiming it violated the crook's rights. Nice.
0
17.09.2018 01:24

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