Why weren't mugshots of all 7 Preston Lord defendants made public?

Seven people have now been charged in connection with the fatal beating of Preston Lord, but not all of their mugshots have been made public.

That's because two of the defendants, Talan Renner and Jacob Meisner, are 17-year-olds who are being held in juvenile detention.

Pre-trial juvenile detention is handled by the courts and is governed by court rules, which prohibit the release of booking photos.

"While juveniles are photographed upon being detained, those photos are not subject to release under Arizona Supreme Court Rule 123, which governs what court records are a matter of public record," said Tim Tait, communications director for the Judicial Branch of Arizona in Maricopa County.

Four adults charged in the case and one juvenile — Treston Billey, 18; William Owen Hines, 18; Taylor Sherman, 19; Dominic Turner, 20; and Talyn Vigil, 17 — are being held by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, which is not bound by the court's rules and releases mugshots to the public.

All three minors charged in connection with Lord's death are being charged as adults.

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Minors being charged as adults can be held at a juvenile detention center or a jail for adults. A judge decides where a minor will be held after considering several factors, such as the seriousness of the charge, the jail's ability to meet the minor's needs, the safety of the minor and other inmates, and the defendant's age and past criminal record.

The seven defendants have all entered not guilty pleas in response to the charges they face, which include first-degree murder and kidnapping.

Lord, 16, was beaten by a group of people during a Halloween party on Oct. 28 in Queen Creek. He died two days later in the hospital.

An initial trial date is scheduled for November, according to court records, but is likely to be pushed out given the complexity of the case and the potential for the death penalty for the adult defendants.

Reporters Miguel Torres, Elena Santa Cruz and Robert Anglen contributed.

Reach the reporter at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Not all of the Preston Lord defendants have public mug shots. Why?