Donald Trump’s Mugshot Merchandise Might Violate Copyright And Cost Him Millions

Illustration 288449106 © Olena Churilova | Dreamstime.com

It might be a stark contrast from the glowing mock TIME cover that he tried to visualize into his reality those years back, but that hasn’t stopped Donald Trump from wanting to make a quick buck from his now-iconic mugshot.

The photo of the scowling former president after he voluntarily surrendered to authorities in Georgia for allegedly interfering with the 2020 election quickly became the face of US$34 T-shirts, US$25 mugs, and US$15 beverage coolers—by the hands of the Trump campaign itself, no less. As of August 26, mugshot-fronted swag has generated US$7.1 million for Trump and his team, Politico reports.

Donald Trump is selling mugshot merch pic.twitter.com/o0ECaXiROK

— Dexerto (@Dexerto) August 26, 2023

And sure, the merchandise may bear his image, but that apparently doesn’t mean the former POTUS can turn his mugshot into a money shot. As detailed in an op-ed for MSNBC by lawyer and SiriusXM radio host Dean Obeidallah, Trump could be infringing US copyright laws as he doesn’t own the booking photograph.

As Obeidallah points out, mugshots taken for identification in federal criminal cases would immediately fall within the public domain. On the other hand, mugshots captured for state and local cases are owned by the jurisdiction.

With Trump’s arrest tied to state charges, that would mean this photo in question belongs to authorities in Georgia. In particular, authorization should come from the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, who took the picture.

“Theoretically, the millions he is making off that photo may rightfully belong to the Fulton County sheriff—an entity that just happens to be in desperate need of funds to address the horrific conditions in the Fulton County Jail,” the attorney surmises.

Former president Donald Trump posing with his mugshot merch. pic.twitter.com/Y917cpHEQm

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) September 1, 2023

Betsy Rosenblatt, who teaches at Case Western Reserve University School of Law, echoes this opinion, telling Spectrum News 1 Ohio that the Fulton County Sheriff’s Department would be the likely author of the photo, and that it could file a copyright claim against potential infringers and ask to keep their profits if it wanted to. 

Whether officials exercise their right to sue, however, is up to them, as they may also agree that the mugshot is a public document, Rosenblatt elaborates.

Further solidifying his views, Obeidallah cites a 2022 article from the University of Georgia School of Law’s Journal of Intellectual Property Law noting that law enforcement agencies would be the rightful owners of mugshots that they’ve taken themselves.

As an image now wedged in the zeitgeist, Trump’s mugshot has emblazoned many a sweater and poster created by independent crafters. Sellers concerned about ending up on the wrong side of the law might want to give a long thought before hawking these pieces online.

[via UPROXX, MSNBC, The New York Times, images via various sources]