United States v. Chappell, No. 10-4746 (4th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CaseOn October 6, 2009, Defendant-Appellant Douglas Chappell was stopped for speeding by a U.S. Park Police Officer. In an attempt to avoid a speeding ticket, Defendant falsely told the officer that he was a Fairfax County Deputy Sheriff. In fact, Defendant had not been employed by the Fairfax County Sheriff's Office for approximately one year. The officer asked Defendant for his law enforcement credentials, and Defendant replied that he had left them at home. He then produced his Virginia driver's license, pointing out that the license photo depicted him in uniform. In order to verify Defendant's employment, the officer called the Fairfax County Sheriff's Office, which requested an employee identification number. When asked for his employee identification number, Defendant made one up. He subsequently admitted his lie and was arrested for impersonating a police officer. Defendant appealed his subsequent conviction, and on appeal, asked the Fourth Circuit to hold the statute under which he was charged as facially unconstitutional under the First Amendment. The Fourth Circuit declined the invitation and affirmed the judgment of the district court.
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