One of the biggest stories in Metro Vancouver over the past few days has involved Surrey's mayor.

Following a B.C. RCMP investigation, a special prosecutor laid a charge of public mischief against Doug McCallum in connection with a phone call he made to police.

McCallum is the only mayor in B.C. facing a criminal charge and he heads B.C.'s second-largest city.

Because of this, the Straight submitted a request to the B.C. RCMP's senior media relations officer for McCallum's mug shots, which we planned to publish, possibly on the front page of the weekly newspaper.

The written request pointed out that when a former premier was charged many years ago in Hawaii, his mug shots were made available to the media.

But Straight.com readers won't be able to see McCallum's mug shots because the Mounties denied the request.

"Unless there is an investigative need for us to release photographs, we do not have the authority to release them," wrote Staff Sgt. Janelle Shoihet in her reply. "In this case we can articulate this need, public interest is not sufficient to breach a person’s privacy rights."

The allegation against McCallum has not been proven in court. He's scheduled to make his first appearance on January 25.

You can see the Straight's request and the B.C. RCMP response below.