Former President Donald Trump arrives in Georgia [Alex Brandon/AP Photo]
Donald Trump Mugshot has been released at Fulton Jail.
Newsone reports that the immediate past President of the United States of America (USA), Donald Trump has again made history, becoming the first former president in the US to have his mugshot taken.
This online news platform understands that Donald Trump Mugshot photo was released after the fomer United States President surrendered in Georgia. The mugshot showed the former president wearing a blue blazer and red tie, staring tersely into the camera.
Newsone Nigeria reports that Donald Trump has been charged with racketeering under Georgia’s RICO law for his efforts to subvert the 2020 presidential election results in the state.
But prosecuting such a charge can be complex, and other charges of the 13 against Trump could represent a bigger threat, a legal expert, Frank Bowman, told Al Jazeera.
“Georgia has a number of fairly narrow statutes having to do, for example, with making false statements to government officials to affect government action that are simpler to prosecute,” Bowman said.
“I think if I’m Mr Trump’s lawyer, I’d be concerned not so much really about the RICO charges, but the variety of other Georgia-specific statutes that may make this a simpler case to prove against Mr Trump.”
Before now, Newsone reports that Trump has been the subject of three prior indictments – but only in his fourth has he been required to take a mugshot as part of his arrest record.
Authorities in many jurisdictions have discretion over whether to take photos of defendants when they are arrested. And given Trump’s status as a public figure with a well-known profile, having a photo on file was not necessary to identify him for future proceedings.
But in Georgia, where Trump faces his latest indictment, officials were determined to treat Trump as they would any other person they arrested.
“Unless somebody tells me differently, we are following our normal practices, and so it doesn’t matter your status, we’ll have a mugshot ready for you,” Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat told Atlanta station WSB-TV after the indictment was issued.
Reacting to Donald Trump Mugshot, trial lawyer and former Baltimore prosecutor Debbie Hines told Al Jazeera she believes Trump’s mugshot is a “significant” step for equal treatment within the court system.
She explained that all the individuals she represents have to be processed through the court system – and that includes taking a booking photo.
“There is nothing that should be any different in the case of Donald Trump, except that in the three other cases, he did not have a mugshot,” Hines said. “And that just gave him what I believe is preferential treatment as opposed to what everyone else gets.”
Former US President Donald Trump is shown in a police booking mugshot released by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office [Fulton County Sheriff’s Office via Reuters]
Newsone Nigeria reports that Donald Trump has made his first post on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, since being suspended in January 2021 – and he used his booking photo from the Fulton County jail to promote his 2024 reelection campaign.
“Never surrender!” he posted with a link to his website, where the mugshot was also featured prominently with an appeal for donations.