John Edwards Mug Shot

John Edwards and Tom DeLay have a little something in common.

They both smiled in their mug shots.

From the Washington Post:

John Edwards violated the first rule of mug shots.

Don’t smile. Don’t make any effort to look like something that was not just scraped from the bottom of life’s shoe.

You are not supposed to look good in a mug shot.

Anyone who thinks that you are supposed to smile in a mug shot is missing the whole point of the exercise. Mug shots showcase us at our lowest points, stripped of all the trappings that made us look like kings. They reveal what we in fact are: Flawed, Possibly Drunk Human Beings in Bad Lighting.

...If you achieve fame and glory, the standard arc of the celebrity narrative demands that at some point you will pose for a mug shot. It shows your understanding that in the grand scheme of things we are as flies to wanton boys: routinely killed, humiliated and caught selling meth in White Castle parking lots for the public’s sport.

Learn how to do it right: eyes forward, steely expression, dead eyes.

I don't know why Edwards smiled. Maybe it was a reflex.

Most people don't smile when it's time to pose for a mug shot.

View a gallery of examples.

In spite of the toothy smile, Edwards doesn't look happy. He has the "dead eyes" of a person at his lowest. I think the smile makes him look incredibly sleazy. Maybe that's my reaction because I know the truth behind the smile.

Tom DeLay also smiled for his mug shot.



It's goofy looking, but not creepy like the Edwards shot.

In an interview with TIME, DeLay explains why he smiled.

TIME: Your smiling mug shot—what made you think of that and what do you think the consequence of that has been?

DeLay: Oh, I don't know. I said a little prayer. First of all, you only get one take. It's a very humiliating thing, to be booked. And I said a little prayer before I actually did the fingerprint thing, and the picture. And my prayer was basically: "Let people see Christ through me. And let me smile." Now, when they took the shot, from my side, I thought it was fakiest smile I'd ever given. But through the camera, it was glowing. I mean, it had the right impact. Poor old left couldn't use it at all. They had all kind of things planned, they'd spent a lot of money. It made me feel kind of good that all those plans went down the toilet.

I've never had a mug shot taken.

If I ever found myself in that position, I can't imagine smiling.