Pinellas County Sheriff's Office to stop posting online mug shots

Published Jan. 10, 2014LARGO — Mug shots of inmates at the Pinellas County Jail will no longer be posted on the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office website starting Monday.Since 2005, the Sheriff's Office has allowed public access to mug shots, which are photographs of inmates who are booked into the jail.But Sheriff Bob Gualtieri announced Thursday that his office will stop posting the photos online because commercial websites continue to scrape mug shots from his office's "Who's In Jail" web page. Other websites then repost them, and some charge fees if people want their mug shots removed."The reposting of their booking photo isn't illegal," Gualtieri said, but added that charging a fee is "unconscionable, verging on blackmail and clearly taking advantage of someone's circumstances."Last year, mugshots.com advertised removal packages ranging from $399 for removal of one arrest to up to $1,799 for five. But on Thursday, removal costs were not available on the site. Mugshots.com operators...