State Sen. Paul Lowe, D-Forsyth, and two other state senators introduced a bill Tuesday to bar state law enforcement agencies from releasing photographs of accused criminals.
Lowe, State Sens. Tim Moffitt, R-Henderson, and Todd Johnson, R-Cabarrus, filed the Booking Photograph Privacy Act as Senate Bill 104. The legislation is the latest front in the national debate regarding the public dissemination of the photos, commonly known as mug shots. The photos are typically released by law enforcement agencies to the media and on the agencies’ social media sites. The photos also can be found online at county jail websites.
“When people are booked, it’s pretty much a private matter until it is flushed out,” Lowe said about the bill. “Everyone who is booked is not necessarily convicted of something, but they are convicted in the court of public opinion.”
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