My advice when it comes to mugshots is to cut your losses. Seriously. When police arrest you, they fingerprint you, and they take your picture. That picture is the first thing that a the judge and prosecutor will see when they are looking at your criminal history. Judges and prosecutors are only human, and in a split second they will have a first impression about the type of person you are. It isn't easy to pose for a good mugshot, because you are likely not in the best shape, as demonstrated by the pictures published every week in The Times of Wayne County. That being said, there is at least one obvious pointer you might want to consider: when posing for your mugshot, you might not want to try and look intimidating.
- You are likely to look as scared as this kid instead of intimidating; and
- If you succeed in looking intimidating, you probably just added $5,000 to your bail.
So, building on yesterday's theme of "don't make a bad situation worse," please try to look as normal as possible when having your picture taken by law enforcement. Your defense attorney will appreciate it.
