August 24, 2023

Donald Trump Was Just Arrested, Fingerprinted, and Photographed in Georgia RICO Case

Another day, another surrender. But this time, there’s a mug shot.

An illustration of a crowd of people looking at a framed image of Donald Trump's mugshot.

Mother Jones illustration; Fulton County Sheriff's Office; Getty

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Donald Trump surrendered Thursday to Fulton County authorities after being charged with conspiring to overturn Georgia’s 2020 presidential election results. Trump, who is facing 13 felony counts in the case, including violation of the state’s RICO law, was fingerprinted, photographed, and booked—just like any another person accused of a serious crime in the Peach State.

A judge set a $200,000 bond in the billionaire’s case, ordering Trump to cease contact with any of his co-defendants unless it’s through his lawyers. He’s also barred from intimidating defendants or witnesses, including through social media posts or “indirect threats” of any kind.

The former president and 18 alleged co-conspirators, including his attorney Rudy Giuliani, were indicted earlier this month on state charges, making this Trump’s fourth indictment in less than half a year. In June, Trump became the first former president to ever face a federal indictment, charges related to classified documents he kept at his Mar-a-Lago resort after his term ended. Less than two months later, he was hit with federal charges for his attempts to overturn Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 election.  

The ex-president, who has pleaded not guilty in all of his criminal cases, is also awaiting trial in New York for allegedly breaking state laws when paying hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016. Trump, who is facing a staggering 91 counts across all these legal battles, is clearly no stranger to a surrender. The ex-president had already been arraigned three times in recent months, including once on the eve of his 77th birthday. 

But, unlike with his in past arrests, this time Trump had his mugh shot taken. This photograph has been greatly anticipated by a large chunk of the country, with many people gleefully awaiting the picture’s release on social media. The politics and ethics around sharing mug shots are controversial and contested; Trump, like other Americans facing arrest, hasn’t actually been convicted of anything. But no one can deny the cultural impact of a former president being held to the same degrading criminal justice procedures as anyone else.

You can check out the history-making photo here. 

Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated that Trump was arrested on his 77th birthday. He was arrested the day before. 

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