PHOENIX (AZFamily) — The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office has resumed posting online mugshots amid a court order that stopped the practice so what changed?
In 2022, Brian Houston was accused of kicking someone’s car in a Target parking lot. He was arrested, booked and had his mugshot taken.
“I didn’t do it. Once the footage was reviewed within, about within a week or so, then all the charges were released and dropped,” he said.
But his mugshot remained online because third-party websites posted it to thousands of followers.
“They’re publicly humiliating them, shaming them, and it recurs over and over and over again,” Houston said.
It was hard for him to get clients at his consulting job so he filed a lawsuit. Last year, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that posting mugshots violates rights to due process, which protects pretrial detainees from punishment.
MCSO stopped posting mugshots online. “You create this scenario where we’re at now, where in the court of public opinion, you’re embarrassed at a minimum,” Houston said.
But last week, the mugshots returned to the MCSO website. Only this time, they don’t include personal information with the photos like date of birth, height and weight. MCSO has also added the arresting agency.
MCSO said the new approach was carefully reviewed “to meet the letter and spirit of the law.”
MCSO has previously argued that mugshots are posted for public transparency but Houston disagrees.
“Transparency is full and accurate documentation. It’s not the creation of a website where people can go to for entertainment to mock others,” he said.
Other states allow mugshots to be posted online but the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ opinion isn’t the first of its kind.
As of Jan. 1, 2024, a California law took effect banning agencies from posting mugshots on social media.
Houston said his fight isn’t over. He plans to continue with the lawsuit now that the mugshots are back online.
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