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NEWS BRIEFS
W.Va. man sues over use of mugshot
MCMECHEN, W.Va. — A McMechen man whose mugshot won a measure of Internet fame is planning to sue companies he says are profiting from the image.
Patrick Tribett was arrested in Bellaire, Ohio, in 2005. Police say he had been huffing the fumes from gold spraypaint, and the lower half of his face was golden in his mugshot.
New Martinsville lawyer H. John Rogers says the image has appeared on T-shirts, coffee mugs and even a billboard in Europe.
Rogers says he's preparing lawsuits against four companies for using Tribett's image for financial gain.
After the 2005 incident, Tribett was charged at least three more times with public intoxication in West Virginia.
Rogers says Tribett has been sober for eight weeks and is making progress.
