mug shot

Mugshot of notorious outlaw Butch Cassidy, when imprisoned in 1894.

A mug shot, or booking photograph, is a photographic portrait taken after one is arrested.^[1] The purpose of the mug shot is to allow law enforcement to have a photographic record of the arrested individual to allow for identification by victims and investigators. Most mug shots are two-part, with one side-view photo, and one front-view.

History

The mug shot was invented by Allan Pinkerton, a famous U.S. detective of the 19th Century. The Pinkerton National Detective Agency first began using these on Wanted posters from the Wild West days. By the 1870s the agency had amassed the largest collection of mug shots in the United States.^[2]

Prior to the advent of computer technology, the accused was asked to hold a card with his name, the date, and other relevant information on it. In recent years, digital photography is used for the booking process, and the accused is no longer asked to hold the card while the photo is taken. Rather, the digital photograph is linked to a database record concerning the arrest.

Etymology

The term derives from mug, an English slang term for face, dating from the 18th century.

The phrase is also sometimes used to refer to any small picture of a face used for any other reason.

Copyright status

Booking photographs are automatically entered into the public domain in the United States, and can be obtained by anyone through the Freedom of Information Act, except in special cases when the arrestees' record has been sealed.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Rogues gallery

References

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