The case for this being extortion feels very weak to me. The records are public record, so they are available to anyone who asks for them. They have already been published on the website, so the request for payment does not carry any threat.
It feels like the real problem here is that many things that are designated as public records have previously been practically inaccessible. We're in an age where it is getting easier to make things like that more accessible and searchable, so we have to reconsider the laws designating various things as public record. Mugshots, in particular, seem to be an ideal case for not being public record at all -- it's not clear how the public benefits from these being accessible.
It feels like the real problem here is that many things that are designated as public records have previously been practically inaccessible. We're in an age where it is getting easier to make things like that more accessible and searchable, so we have to reconsider the laws designating various things as public record. Mugshots, in particular, seem to be an ideal case for not being public record at all -- it's not clear how the public benefits from these being accessible.