Defense attorney: Dismiss french fry case

A defense attorney argued today for the dismissal of the case against a 76-year-old woman arrested after arguing with a police officer over whether she blocked the drive-through lane at McDonald's while waiting for an order of french fries.

But County Judge Patrick Caddell did not rule immediately on the defense motion during a pretrial hearing this morning. He said he would do that later.

Jean Merola of Clearwater is scheduled to go on trial July 10. She faces an $88 fine on a city charge of obstructing a right of way on Jan. 17.

That day, McDonald's employees had asked Merola to pull her car forward to wait for a medium order of unsalted fries. Clearwater police Officer Matthew Parco, who was behind Merola, said he couldn't get by and asked her to move. Parco said Merola cursed at him and called him names. Merola said the officer blasted his horn and harassed her. The grandmother of eight was arrested, handcuffed and booked at the Pinellas County Jail.

Merola's attorney, Steven Andrews, said the case should be dismissed because Merola didn't willfully block the drive-through and it was Parco's cruiser, not her Lincoln Town Car, that blocked traffic. Assistant state attorney Robin Allweiss said Merola didn't move to the spot where McDonald's employees directed her.

"Obviously," Judge Caddell quipped, "the potatoes had the thickest skin of anyone that day."

Police administrators later cleared Parco of accusations that he acted inappropriately when he arrested Merola.

But last month Parco resigned after internal affairs investigators concluded that he had lied to a supervisor.

The internal affairs case had nothing to do with Merola's arrest. Instead, it regarded allegations that Parco behaved inappropriately on March 29 when responding to a child custody call. Witnesses told investigators that he offered a 15-year-old girl chewing tobacco, fired his Taser into his cruiser windshield to demonstrate how it worked and showed the teen a computer video of a cow being Tasered. He denied doing those things, but electronic usage logs on the computer and Taser indicated otherwise.

During today's hearing, Andrews said he wants to cross-examine Parco about the internal affairs case that led to his departure if Merola's case goes to trial. Allweiss said she had case law against such a cross-examination. Caddell suggested that questioning a witness about matters related to his truthfulness may well fly in his court.

Jackie Alexander, Times staff writer