It comes as little surprise that Patricia Krentcil, New Jersey's notorious 'tanning mom' accused of taking her five-year-old daughter into a tanning booth, was a fan of the UV rays even back in her school days.
And even in black and white, her high school yearbook photo shows Krentcil's skin a darker hue than usual for a blonde teen.
However, with bouncing curls and a sweet smile, the photo also shows how much the 44-year-old's appearance has changed over the years – even if her tan has remained disturbingly dark.
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The picture serves as evidence of the toll Krentcil’s excessive tanning habit has had over the past three decades.
'I do remember her being on the tan side. She definitely had some color’ the classmate said.
Yesterday it emerged that Krentcil had a history of bankruptcy but she refused to hide away and was spotted running a number a number of errands while wearing eye-catching outfits which complemented her lurid skin colour.
Most important of all Friday's chores, of course, was topping up her signature tan at the salon where she is believed to pay $99 a month for unlimited access to the booths.
Krentcil teamed that outing with a trip to Target, where she was photographed picking out clothing with a pair of teenage girls - though she joked to reporters that she was shopping for sunblock.
She then returned to her home in Nutley - tired, you might expect, of being followed around by paparazzi all day.
However, she did not seem too bored of being noticed, as she very quickly re-emerged - and she had swapped her tight trousers for a skimpy white summer dress, all the better to show off and complement her extraordinary tan.
Rather than barricading herself inside, Krentcil watered the lawn in full view of the waiting press pack, until eventually she lost her temper in a showbiz-style blowout, and aimed her hose at photographers.
Two unfortunate neighbours also ended up on the wrong side of her tongue, as she mistook them for journalists and tried to chase them away from the house before eventually realising they were in fact family friends.
Earlier it was revealed that Krentcil, who is free on a $2,500 child endangerment bond, filed for bankruptcy in 1999 – the year before she was sentenced to five years' probation for credit card theft, forgery and theft for writing bad checks.
In 2001, a bench warrant was issued for her failure to appear at a probation hearing. Krentcil was only arrested on the warrant last month when she was accused of taking her daughter into a tanning booth.
Documents showing that there were 22 judgments against her between 1997 and 2010, including $468 owed to a New Jersey radiology group.
Krentcil's financial difficulties reached a head when she declared bankruptcy in 1999, the next year she was arrested for theft and forgery.
Court officials in Camden County on Friday say her previous probation had been terminated and she would not be required to appear in court. She had paid $4,000 to settle the outstanding charge.
Krentcil told New York’s Daily News that some days she tans more than others likening her extreme tanning habit to drinking coffee: 'Do you drink coffee? Some days you don’t. Same thing.'
And yesterday she also fired back against reality TV star, Snooki, saying the Jersey Shore star was ‘fake’, ‘fat’ and ‘disgusting.’ Krentcil slammed the fellow fake tanner to TMZ reporters after Snooki previously criticised her as 'crazy.'
The saga began when the teacher of Krentcil's fair-skinned, red-haired daughter Anna noticed serious burns on the 5-year-old's body.
However, Krentcil has always denied that she took Anna into a booth.
'I would never, ever put my daughter in a tanning booth,' she told a TMZ reporter.
'Any mother who makes an accusation about me is not a mother because I’m a great mother - I would never do that to my child.'
Pictures emerged on Thursday of Anna, along with her brother Addison, in the arms of their father Rich Krentcil at their Nutley, New Jersey home.
Mr Krentcil, a 47-year-old trader, stood up for his wife in spite of the fact that neighbors have said she went tanning while pregnant with Anna.
'They’re making her out to be a monster,' he told The Daily News. 'She just likes it. She’s not a crazy maniac where she has to tan every day.'
Krentcil said that while she did take her daughter Anna to the tanning salon, the little girl never got in the booth and was only there waiting for her mother to finish her session.
She argues that Anna got her sunburn from playing in the yard and not breaking the law. Doctors say tanning booths, which emit UV radiation, are known carcinogens.
Krentcil's daughter apparently received enough of the radiation to burn her skin and leave her with painful damage, police say.
Her attorney, John Caruso, disagrees, as he said that Krentcil will be exonerated, because the evidence will show the child never entered the booth.
'Forget about the presumption of innocence; my client is 150 per cent innocent,' Caruso said. 'She loves that child more than her whole life. She would never, ever allow her child to go inside a tanning bed.'
The child is still living at home with her mother, Caruso told Municipal Court Judge Roslyn Holmes-Grant, though he said the state's child welfare agency is monitoring the family.
Krentcil said she loves tanning and has visited salons for many years but would not do anything to jeopardize her daughter's health.
'Never in my life would I endanger my child by putting her in a tanning booth. I'm not dumb,' she said before her scheduled hearing. Outside court, she called herself 'a wonderful mother.'
The Bergen County Record reports that employees the tanning salon in Nutley, New Jersey, didn't realize Krentcil had brought her daughter into the stand-up tanning booth.
State law prohibits children under 14 from using tanning booths. Anyone under 18 must have parental permission.
The incident was reported when a teacher at Anna's school overheard Anna telling a friend that she went to the tanning salon with her mom, and then the teacher pieced that together with Anna's noticeable sunburn.
'I tan, she doesn't tan,' Krentcil said, stating the obvious.
With her skin reminiscent of the outlandish character Magda from the 1998 comedy There's Something About Mary, it is very clear that Krentcil has been to more than one tanning session in her time.
Even given the timing of her mugshot - taken on April 24 - and her Today Show interview - which aired on May 2 - the difference in her skin tone makes it clear that her legal scuffle didn't stop her from making a stop at the tanning salon in the meantime.
Krentcil says her daughter did not break any laws by going in the room with her but not in the actual tanning booth. 'It's called a tanning booth and a tanning room,' she said.
The legal situation has taken a toll on both Krentcil and Anna. 'It's traumatizing for a little girl who did nothing wrong but got a little sunburn,' Krentcil told Today.
Police arrested Krentcil on April 24. She took the child to the tanning salon the week before, authorities say.
The charge was upgraded to a felony on Monday, and Krentcil was released after posting $25,000 bail.
A family told WABC-TV that Krentcil was 'shaken' by her arrest.
Dr Stephanie Badalamenti, a dermatologist, told the station tanning booths can increase the risk of developing melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer, by 75 percent.
'This can be very dangerous,' she said. 'This can be a life-changer.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2139148/Tanning-mom-took-daughter-5-sun-booth-history-bankruptcy-STILL-hits-salon-fix.html#ixzz1u6PuPS49
And even in black and white, her high school yearbook photo shows Krentcil's skin a darker hue than usual for a blonde teen.
However, with bouncing curls and a sweet smile, the photo also shows how much the 44-year-old's appearance has changed over the years – even if her tan has remained disturbingly dark.
Scroll down for video
Color chart: Patricia Krentcil sported a tan back in high school according to an old classmate, which this yearbook photo seems to prove too - Krentcil is accused of taking her 5-year-old daughter into a tan booth
'I do remember her being on the tan side. She definitely had some color’ the classmate said.
Yesterday it emerged that Krentcil had a history of bankruptcy but she refused to hide away and was spotted running a number a number of errands while wearing eye-catching outfits which complemented her lurid skin colour.
Back at home: Krentcil changed into a skimpy outfit to do a spot of gardening, but got worked up at the press
Attack: The 'tanning mom' even aimed her hose at paparazzi as she stood outside her house
Krentcil teamed that outing with a trip to Target, where she was photographed picking out clothing with a pair of teenage girls - though she joked to reporters that she was shopping for sunblock.
She then returned to her home in Nutley - tired, you might expect, of being followed around by paparazzi all day.
However, she did not seem too bored of being noticed, as she very quickly re-emerged - and she had swapped her tight trousers for a skimpy white summer dress, all the better to show off and complement her extraordinary tan.
Rather than barricading herself inside, Krentcil watered the lawn in full view of the waiting press pack, until eventually she lost her temper in a showbiz-style blowout, and aimed her hose at photographers.
Two unfortunate neighbours also ended up on the wrong side of her tongue, as she mistook them for journalists and tried to chase them away from the house before eventually realising they were in fact family friends.
Earlier it was revealed that Krentcil, who is free on a $2,500 child endangerment bond, filed for bankruptcy in 1999 – the year before she was sentenced to five years' probation for credit card theft, forgery and theft for writing bad checks.
In 2001, a bench warrant was issued for her failure to appear at a probation hearing. Krentcil was only arrested on the warrant last month when she was accused of taking her daughter into a tanning booth.
Lashing out: She displayed fury towards unwanted visitors... but soon realised they were actually friends
Krentcil's financial difficulties reached a head when she declared bankruptcy in 1999, the next year she was arrested for theft and forgery.
Court officials in Camden County on Friday say her previous probation had been terminated and she would not be required to appear in court. She had paid $4,000 to settle the outstanding charge.
Krentcil told New York’s Daily News that some days she tans more than others likening her extreme tanning habit to drinking coffee: 'Do you drink coffee? Some days you don’t. Same thing.'
And yesterday she also fired back against reality TV star, Snooki, saying the Jersey Shore star was ‘fake’, ‘fat’ and ‘disgusting.’ Krentcil slammed the fellow fake tanner to TMZ reporters after Snooki previously criticised her as 'crazy.'
In court: Patricia Krentcil appeared at her arraignment on Wednesday because she was charged with child endangerment for allegedly taking her 5-year-old daughter tanning
Disturbing: Krentcil is showing no signs of slowing down with her tanning habits despite facing child endangerment charges for taking her daughter into a booth
However, Krentcil has always denied that she took Anna into a booth.
'I would never, ever put my daughter in a tanning booth,' she told a TMZ reporter.
'Any mother who makes an accusation about me is not a mother because I’m a great mother - I would never do that to my child.'
Pictures emerged on Thursday of Anna, along with her brother Addison, in the arms of their father Rich Krentcil at their Nutley, New Jersey home.
Mr Krentcil, a 47-year-old trader, stood up for his wife in spite of the fact that neighbors have said she went tanning while pregnant with Anna.
'They’re making her out to be a monster,' he told The Daily News. 'She just likes it. She’s not a crazy maniac where she has to tan every day.'
Pale family: Anna, 5, is seen being held by her father Rich Krentcil, and shown with her brother Addison , as the children are still living at home with their mother in spite of the charges
She argues that Anna got her sunburn from playing in the yard and not breaking the law. Doctors say tanning booths, which emit UV radiation, are known carcinogens.
Krentcil's daughter apparently received enough of the radiation to burn her skin and leave her with painful damage, police say.
Her attorney, John Caruso, disagrees, as he said that Krentcil will be exonerated, because the evidence will show the child never entered the booth.
'Forget about the presumption of innocence; my client is 150 per cent innocent,' Caruso said. 'She loves that child more than her whole life. She would never, ever allow her child to go inside a tanning bed.'
Mother and daughter: The difference in hue of Krentcil (left) and Anna (right) is blatantly obvious
Shocked: Krentcil (left) and her daughter Anna (right) have been 'shaken up' by the attention from the arrest
The child is still living at home with her mother, Caruso told Municipal Court Judge Roslyn Holmes-Grant, though he said the state's child welfare agency is monitoring the family.
Mugshot: Krentcil clearly went tanning after her arrest (seen here) as she is darker in recent images
'Never in my life would I endanger my child by putting her in a tanning booth. I'm not dumb,' she said before her scheduled hearing. Outside court, she called herself 'a wonderful mother.'
The Bergen County Record reports that employees the tanning salon in Nutley, New Jersey, didn't realize Krentcil had brought her daughter into the stand-up tanning booth.
State law prohibits children under 14 from using tanning booths. Anyone under 18 must have parental permission.
The incident was reported when a teacher at Anna's school overheard Anna telling a friend that she went to the tanning salon with her mom, and then the teacher pieced that together with Anna's noticeable sunburn.
'I tan, she doesn't tan,' Krentcil said, stating the obvious.
With her skin reminiscent of the outlandish character Magda from the 1998 comedy There's Something About Mary, it is very clear that Krentcil has been to more than one tanning session in her time.
Fighting for her case: Krentcil (left) says that it was all a misunderstanding and that she did not take her daughter in the booth but only in the room while she herself was tanning
Trip to the salon: Krentcil argues the girl was in the room but not in the actual booth
Krentcil says her daughter did not break any laws by going in the room with her but not in the actual tanning booth. 'It's called a tanning booth and a tanning room,' she said.
The legal situation has taken a toll on both Krentcil and Anna. 'It's traumatizing for a little girl who did nothing wrong but got a little sunburn,' Krentcil told Today.
Police arrested Krentcil on April 24. She took the child to the tanning salon the week before, authorities say.
The charge was upgraded to a felony on Monday, and Krentcil was released after posting $25,000 bail.
A family told WABC-TV that Krentcil was 'shaken' by her arrest.
Dr Stephanie Badalamenti, a dermatologist, told the station tanning booths can increase the risk of developing melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer, by 75 percent.
'This can be very dangerous,' she said. 'This can be a life-changer.'
Watch the video
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2139148/Tanning-mom-took-daughter-5-sun-booth-history-bankruptcy-STILL-hits-salon-fix.html#ixzz1u6PuPS49
