Case against former deputy settled

The lawsuit claimed the deputy violated a Valrico woman's civil rights.

By COLLEEN JENKINS, Times Staff Writer
Published September 20, 2007

Daniel Brock, who was fired as a deputy at the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, is still fighting to get his job back.
	[DANIEL WALLACE | Times]

TAMPA - A Hillsborough County sheriff's deputy who lost his job over his handling of DUI cases has settled a federal lawsuit that accused him of violating a Valrico woman's civil rights while arresting her son.

Court records made public Wednesday did not reveal the terms of the settlement between Mary Beth Mazar and former Deputy Daniel Brock. Their attorneys said only that the details are confidential.

Mazar's lawsuit predated Brock's May 24 firing and was not directly related to the internal affairs investigation into his DUI arrests. But her accusations echoed those of the investigation, which found that Brock arrested 43 drivers who had demonstrated no visible signs of impairment. Of those drivers, 19 also had blood alcohol levels below the amount at which the law presumes a driver is impaired.

Mazar alleged that Brock arrested her Aug. 31, 2002, on a charge of DUI even though a blood alcohol test showed she wasn't intoxicated. She had been summoned to the scene to pick up the car of her minor son, who was under arrest.

According to her lawsuit, Brock threatened to arrest her after she expressed frustration over her son's arrest. The suit said Brock followed her home, forced his way into her house, shoved her into a corner and pepper sprayed her face twice. Later, the suit alleged, he held her down on the concrete driveway with a knee in her back.

Deputies also detained Mazar's 12-year-old daughter, who had demanded her mother's release, for 12 hours before charging her with obstruction, the suit said.

Mazar's DUI arrest later was expunged from her record.

In July, Mazar accepted a $100,000 settlement from the Hillsborough Sheriff's Office, to be shared with her daughter.

With Brock's settlement, the case is now closed. The ousted deputy is still fighting to get his job back.

[Last modified September 20, 2007, 00:40:48]