Trump's mugshot makes its grand debut

It’s here. A much-anticipated mugshot of Donald Trump is on display after Georgia authorities denied his request to be excused from picture day.

Trump, who has been indicted four times this year, had so far managed to avoid the specter of a mugshot, though he has sought to profit from merch with a fake booking photo.

Asked weeks earlier whether Trump would be required to take a photo, Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat, a Democrat, said: “It doesn’t matter your status, we’ll have a mugshot ready for you.”

The Fulton County Sheriff’s office released the photo Thursday evening after Trump turned himself into the Fulton County jail, where about half of the 19 defendants in the Georgia election interference case had previously surrendered.

Trump intentionally scheduled his booking to take place during primetime viewing hours, the Guardian previously reported.

The booking process also involves a few other routine steps, including fingerprinting and collecting personal information such as height and weight.

A number of his co-defendants including Mark Meadows, the former White House chief of staff, and Jeffrey Clark, a former justice department attorney, had sought to block their arrests, filing emergency requests to extend the deadline to turn themselves in.

Their requests were denied on Wednesday. All defendants have until noon on Friday to surrender, after which the district attorney Fani Willis said she will order warrants for arrest.