Convicted or not, mugshots can live online forever. But should they?
Updated:
Convicted or not, mugshots can live online forever. But should they?
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Mugshots, the photographs taken by police agencies when booking someone accused of a crime into jail, sometimes go viral.
Police post them online, people share them on social media and there are websites dedicated to publishing and profiting off mugshots, published along with the names and crimes they are accused of.
Despite the fact that some charges against the accused are sometimes dropped or downgraded, these photos of people who may be innocent or guilty, can live online forever and haunt the person in the picture.
But he doesn’t want his past to define who he is now.
“I think I have a lot of positivity since I was released,” he said.
That s why he was in Kissimmee on Sunday to visit the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition s Free The Vote tour bus.
The group s bus provides voter registration information, COVID-19 testing, food, and had a bounce house for kids.
Members with the FRRC said they want to not only restore former felons’ rights but also the dignity of these returning citizens. The organization is celebrating April as “second chance month.”
Marquis McKenzie, FRRC s chapter development and training manager, said he lost his voting rights before he even had them. At 15 years old, he was taken out of the juvenile system and charged as an adult, he said.
Florida needs to help kids clear their criminal records orlandosentinel.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from orlandosentinel.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Business owner overcomes past jail time, now runs thriving business
Tags:
Jerry Askin. (WKMG)
Marquis McKenzie, 30, said he’s living proof that anyone can overcome past mistakes and that second chances are real.
The father of three is now a successful business owner and nonprofit founder, who also advocates for returning citizens who once made mistakes like he did.
McKenzie was arrested at 15-years-old and spent two years behind bars for armed robbery. He told News 6 he’s not letting his conviction override his passion. He said he wants his story to be motivation for his own kids, and also for teens and juvenile offenders.