The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office explained why it released the mugshot of one arrested police officer but not the other.

Even in the public-records-friendly state of Florida, it’s not unusual for a law enforcement agency to withhold the mugshot when it arrests one of its own.

That’s what the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office chose to do after Officer Rodney Bryant was charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly threatening his girlfriend and two other women with a gun during a dispute that began at a strip club on Friday.

But that was a choice, not a requirement, as was made clear just days later, when the Sheriff’s Office decided to release the mugshot of former officer Matthew Butler, who resigned after he was charged with capital sexual battery of a victim younger than 12 — accused of raping a young girl.

At the press conference announcing Butler’s arrest, Undersheriff Patrick Ivey said that the agency decided to release the mugshot due to the “egregious nature” of the charges against him.

Pat Gleason, special counsel for open government at the state Attorney General’s Office, explained that law enforcement agencies must weigh the purpose of the exemption, which is to protect the officer’s safety, with the public interest or benefit in disclosure.

“The standard is not discretion like it is with criminal investigative information,” Gleason said.

In order to keep their mugshot from being released, officers who are arrested must sign a written request for an exemption. The Sheriff’s Office provided Bryant’s written request to the Times-Union, but said Butler did not request one.

“Even if he had, as the undersheriff explained during his news conference, we would not have honored the exemption given the severity of the charge,” Lt. Chris Brown, who oversees the agency’s Professional Oversight Unit, told the Times-Union.

Brown said it was not the first time an officer’s mugshot has been released by the Sheriff's Office.

Gleason, of the attorney general’s office, said that most agencies take the position not to release mugshots because they are concerned about protecting an officer, especially when there is only an arrest, and not a conviction.

“It’s not the same as it being confidential, but it’s also not the same as saying, ‘you can decide,’” she said.