Topics: Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein, Crime, Twitter
Members of the public have called for US authorities to release images of Ghislaine Maxwell in custody, but a Department of Justice policy means that likely will never happen.
Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in prison this week after being convicted of five counts for her role in recruiting underage girls to be sexually abused by Jeffrey Epstein.
Her crimes took place took place over the course of a decade, between 1994 and 2004, but it wasn't until July 2020 she was arrested for her involvement.
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The former British socialite was held mostly at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center prior to her sentencing on Tuesday (28 June), but despite being kept behind bars for months on end her mugshot was never released to the public.
Many Twitter users have called for the release of the image to see Maxwell experiencing the consequences of her crimes, with one writing: "Where is the photo of Ghislaine Maxwell in prison uniform? She’s still protected from the shame of being seen in the garb of the criminal that she is. The last image of that woman (that didn’t give up names) should be of her as a criminal in the dock."
Another member of the public questioned: "Why has no mugshot been published anywhere for Ghislaine Maxwell?"
In response to the confusion, Law and Crime Network host Angenette Levy explained: "The feds don't release booking photos/mug shots."
If the feds 'don't release' them you may be wondering how it is you've ever seen an image of a suspect accused of a federal crime, but the Department of Justice policy explains a mugshot can only be released if it serves a legitimate law enforcement purpose.
In a statement to Newsweek, an FBI spokesperson explained: "We do not release mugshots absent a law enforcement purpose, for example, when a person is a fugitive."
Authorities are also permitted to release such images when they're looking for witnesses who may only know a suspect by recognising their face, rather than their name or other details.
There are a lot of photos of Maxwell on red carpets or at official events already available to the public, meaning there is no real reason to release her mugshot.
Following her sentencing, Maxwell has now requested to serve her sentence at the Danbury Federal Correctional Institute in Connecticut; the prison which inspired Netflix's Orange Is The New Black.
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