Cedar Hill officer solicited sex from woman arrested for DWI: arrest affidavit
CEDAR HILL, Texas - A now-former police officer turned himself in after he allegedly solicited sex from a woman he arrested for DWI.
Donald Mercer, 33, resigned from the Cedar Hill Police Department just days after the complaint about the August arrest was made. He turned himself in to authorities on Monday.
The officer was already under investigation for a separate incident when the city received the complaint that he allegedly used his position to sexually harass a woman arrested for DWI.
Donald Mercer (Ellis County Sheriff's Office)
According to Mercer’s arrest warrant, the former officer pulled over a 26-year-old woman at 400 East Belt Line Road in August.
After failed field sobriety tests, Mercer arrested her for DWI and placed her in the back of his patrol car before taking her to Midlothian Methodist Hospital for a blood draw.
While leaving the hospital, the woman told Officer Mercer that she had "marijuana in her pocket," according to the affidavit.
Texas DPS says video showed Officer Mercer allegedly reaching into her pocket and then kissing her neck and lips before putting her seatbelt on and driving off.
Featured
Former Cedar Hill police officer arrested, charged with official oppression
Criminal charges have been filed against a former Cedar Hill police officer Donald Mercer over alleged misconduct with a female during a DWI arrest in August 2024.
However, Officer Mercer did not make it far. The arrest warrant says he pulled into a parking lot one mile away and turned off the patrol car’s lights and his body camera. However, his rear patrol car camera activated once he opened the victim’s door.
That video allegedly shows the two talking away from the car. The woman claims Officer Mercer asked for oral sex, and she said no.
Video shows the officer placing her back in the patrol car. "Her hands are still cuffed behind her back, and she is whimpering," the affidavit states.
On the way to jail, the arrest report says, "The victim is seen passing out several times due to her intoxication level." The next day, the officer allegedly texted her saying he’d return her marijuana.
According to the affidavit, the victim texted the officer a month later saying: "You pulled over in the middle of nowhere to get me to [do a sex act]. You know I can report you?"
Mercer resigned from the police department rather than face termination proceedings, according to Cedar Hill police officials.
Mercer’s attorney is asking people not to rush to judgment and says it is conducting its own investigation.
Mercer was charged with official oppression, which is a Class A misdemeanor.