Donald Trump’s mug shot was released on Thursday evening shortly after the former US president was booked at an Atlanta jail on a dozen felony charges as part of a criminal case in the 2020 election defeat in Georgia’.
Trump Arrest LIVE: Former US President Booked in Georgia Election Case, Mug Shot Released
Donald Trump’s team had discussed the former president’s mug shot prior to him taking it at the Fulton County jail, two sources familiar with the discussions told CNN. He wanted to appear “defiant” in the shot, and purposefully chose not to smile, the report said An unsmiling Trump - inmate no. P01135809 was captured glaring at the camera in the mug shot.
The image represented yet another extraordinary moment for Trump, who did not have to submit to a photograph when making appearances in his three other criminal cases.
Trump, 77, already has entered uncharted territory as the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges, even as he mounts another campaign for the White House next year. Far from damaging his candidacy, however, the four cases filed against him have only bolstered his standing among Republican voters. He holds a commanding polling lead in the race for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic President Joe Biden in the November 2024 election.
Dozens of supporters, waving Trump banners and American flags, jostled for a glimpse as Trump arrived at the jail. Among the Trump backers gathered outside was Georgia U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of the former president’s most loyal congressional allies.
The mug shot, which was not immediately made available, adds Trump to the ranks of gangster Al Capone, crooner Frank Sinatra and other high-profile Americans who have posed for jailhouse photographs. The image is certain to be circulated widely by Trump’s foes and supporters alike.
Trump faces 13 felony counts in the Georgia case, including racketeering, which is typically used to target organized crime, for pressuring state officials to reverse his election loss and setting up an illegitimate slate of electors to undermine the formal congressional certification of Biden’s 2020 victory.
On Wednesday, Trump’s leading rivals in the race for the Republican presidential nomination met in Milwaukee for their first debate. Trump skipped that event, instead sitting for a pre-taped interview with conservative commentator Tucker Carlson aimed at siphoning away viewers.
(With Reuters input)