# Mugshot ownership

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mugshot-ownership/238380>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 5, 2004, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mugshot-ownership/238380 "2004-04-05T16:40:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![jb\_007clone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/91b2a8/32.png) [@jb\_007clone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jb_007clone)\
**Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mugshot-ownership/238380/1 "2004-04-05T16:40:54Z")

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Just wondering who exactly owns a mugshot photo? The individual, the government or the public? What happens when people use mugshots to make t-shirts, who do they pay for the rights?

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**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\
**Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mugshot-ownership/238380/2 "2004-04-05T16:55:27Z")

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The photograph is owned (for copyright purposes) by the photographer. If the photographer works for a government agency, then the agency holds the rights. A famous person may also have some claim to the use of his image, but that’s up to the courts to decide.

Now, if the photographer works for the Federal government, the photo is in the public domain and anyone can use it (Federal documents are not copyrightable). I don’t know how it works for state and local governments, though.