Will Delaware bar police from releasing mug shots of children and teenagers?

Democratic lawmakers have introduced a bill that would bar police from releasing juvenile mug shots for minor crimes.

House Bill 243 by Rep. Franklin Cooke, D-New Castle, was introduced on Thursday. It would apply to mug shots of children 17 years old or younger.

According to the bill, mug shots could still be published if the juvenile is charged with a violent felony and the mug shot is necessary to protect the public’s safety.

The Delaware Police Chiefs Council, which represents all police departments in the state, supports the bill, according to its chair Patrick Ogden.

Jamie Leonard, president of the Delaware Fraternal Order of Police, the officers' union, said his organization has yet to take a stance on the bill.

In a Statehouse where several lawmakers in both parties — including this bill's sponsor, Cooke — are retired officers or affiliated with police, proposed changes to policing laws historically need support from the police themselves.

Cooke has argued that, because information such as mug shots lives forever on the internet, teenage mistakes come back to haunt someone in adulthood.

"I think everyone can agree that in the vast majority of circumstances, there's no benefit to publishing juvenile mug shots — only damage to young people," Cooke said.

"I'm committed to getting this bill passed this year and ending this practice."

SENATOR REMOVED FROM COMMITTEE:After losing chairmanship, Sen. Darius Brown removed from committee entirely due to arrest

Twenty-six lawmakers in the 62-member General Assembly have signed onto the bill, which has its first committee hearing on Tuesday afternoon. The legislative session ends this month.

Democrats promised the bill exactly one year ago during a press conference in response to peaceful protests against police brutality that turned violent in Dover and Wilmington shortly after George Floyd died in Minneapolis.

Through an executive order in June 2020, Gov. John Carney barred police in the executive branch, including the Delaware State Police and Capitol Police, from releasing juvenile mug shots.

There there is no universal policy among the other 40-plus police departments in the state.

ENDING THE YOUTH AND TRAINING WAGE:Democrats move to end law that lets businesses pay younger, newer workers lower wages

Sarah Gamard covers government and politics for Delaware Online/The News Journal. Reach her at (302) 324-2281 or sgamard@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahGamard.