When a Fairfax County judge threw out a case against a former top corrections official in Prince George’s County accused of impersonating a police officer, he said there was “no case” and dismissed the charges for lack of evidence.
Fairfax County authorities should have known that and never brought the charges against Rose C. Merchant, the former deputy director for the Prince George’s County Department of Corrections, according to a lawsuit Merchant has filed against the county and police officers involved in the case.
Merchant was fired in February 2008 after she was charged with impersonating a law enforcement officer. A Beltway motorist claimed that a black Mercedes-Benz with Merchant’s license plate came up behind him, flashed blue lights and forced the car to the side of the road. When questioned about the incident, Merchant denied involvement and Fairfax authorities said she showed her corrections badge, posing as an officer.
Merchant filed a malicious prosecution suit in federal court in Alexandria in April, claiming that police knew when charges were filed that she could use her badge as identification but still filed “baseless criminal charges” with “no probable cause or facts,” the lawsuit says.
Fairfax County attorneys sought to have the complaint dismissed on the grounds that they weren’t served with the suit properly, but a judge ruled Friday that the lawsuit can proceed.
Benjamin Jacewicz, a county attorney for Fairfax who represents the county and police officers named in the suit, declined to comment on the pending litigation.
When officers inspected Merchant’s vehicle after the incident and didn’t find blue lights, Merchant and her then-husband asked to know who made the allegations. Police said she was uncooperative during questioning, and a detective incorrectly told a superior that Merchant claimed to be a director of fire and public safety.
The suit echoes Merchant’s position during the criminal proceedings — that she repeatedly told officers she was a corrections official and used her badge for identification.
“At no time do the police audio and video recordings show the plaintiff holding herself out to be a federal, state or local law enforcement officer,” the suit says.
Fairfax County detectives had verified that Merchant worked for the Prince George’s Department of Corrections and confirmed that she could use the badge as identification, according to the lawsuit.
