Who, if anyone, owns the copyright to mugshots in the United States?
<p>In the United States, who, if anyone, owns the copyright to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mug_shot" rel="noreferrer">mugshots</a> (or perhaps <em>any</em> &quot;work&quot;, if the principles generalize) produced by federal, state, or local employees?</p>
<p>If there is too much variation to cover exhaustively in a single answer, a general description of that variation or a few examples would be great.</p>

<p>The Mugshot was most likely made by a state employee in the course of their work.</p>
<p><strong>Employees</strong> don't get a copyright for works from their work but their employers do so generally, as that is work for hire. However, the government is different:</p>
<ul>
<li>The US government specifically can't have any copyright from works of its employees. They are public domain. <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/101" rel="noreferrer">17 USC 101</a> &amp; <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/105" rel="noreferrer">105</a></li>
<li>State governments are <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_status_of_works_by_subnational_governments_of_the_United_States" rel="noreferrer">a little different</a>. Technically they <em>could</em> be copyrighted unless they are laws and edicts, but states might disclaim such:
<ul>
<li>Arizona employees make Arizona copyrighted works.</li>
<li>California works require public access and are public domain unless the state specifically authorizes a work to be copyrighted.</li>
<li>Florida and its employees can't have copyright in government works unless they specifically make a law that carves a work out from this beforehand.</li>
<li><strong>Indiana</strong> employees make technically copyrighted works, but they can't restrict use by obtaining a license or fee in any way under <a href="https://law.justia.com/codes/indiana/2017/title-5/article-14/chapter-3/section-5-14-3-3" rel="noreferrer">IC 5-14-3</a>, making them quasi-public domain.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p>A public domain image can be done with whatever you want. No strings attached, no rights of rightsholders violated.</p>
<p><strong>However</strong>, not everything made <em>on behalf of</em> the government is made <em>by</em> the government: Contractors do have the copyright in the first place, and then can assign it to a government, which does <strong>not</strong> make a work public domain.</p>

united-states copyright public-domain