Former Newport News police officer pleads guilty in false report case Scott Mounger Scott Mounger, 50, pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge in connection to a traffic stop on Aug. 9, 2012. (Photo courtesy of Newport News Police Department / November 7, 2013) By Ashley K. Speed, akspeed@dailypress November 8, 2013 NEWPORT NEWS — A former Newport News police officer pleaded guilty Thursday to filing a false report. Scott Mounger, 50, pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge in connection to a traffic stop on Aug. 9, 2012. He was sentenced to six months, with all time suspended. A felony perjury charge was dismissed against Mounger as part of the plea, according to court documents. Mounger and J.D Lynch, who was being trained by Mounger, had stopped a 2007 Chevy Impala that was weaving back and forth on Jefferson Avenue near 74th Street about 2:48 a.m., according to the prosecutors proffer of evidence filed in Newport News Circuit Court. Lynch approached the driver of the car, but after speaking with him for several minutes, he refused to take a sobriety test. When the driver refused to take the test, Mounger began to speak with the driver. In a three-page report submitted to his supervisor, Mounger doesnt name Lynch as assisting in the arrest, according to the prosecutors evidence. In this report the defendant falsely claimed that he was the officer that made first contact with [the driver] … the report fails to mention any interaction that Officer Lynch had with the driver, according to the proffer. Mounger told police that he purposely omitted Officer Lynchs interactions with [the driver] because he believed Mr. Lynchs inexperience would be detrimental to the case so he took him out of the equation, the proffer reads. In Moungers report, he only references his actions with the driver — not Lynchs. At the bottom of the report, however, Mounger lists Lynch as a witness to the incident. Mounger had been recognized in the past for having the most drinking-and-driving arrests in the department. He won the 2009 Chiefs Award for the most DUI arrests in 2008, when he had 42. Im just glad it is over, and Im glad for his family, his attorney, Robert W. Lawrence, said Thursday. Mounger was a Newport News police officer for eight years. He was placed on unpaid administrative leave during the investigation of the incident. He retired from the department in April. He cant apply for a police job for two years as part of his plea. Mounger was recently hired at a major corporation, Lawrence said.
Posted on: Sat, 09 Nov 2013 08:11:46 +0000