WAXAHACHIE, TX — A former Cedar Hill Police officer has been sentenced to nearly a year in jail after an Ellis County jury convicted him of Official Oppression for sexually harassing a woman in his custody and attempting to coerce her into a sexual act.
Donald Najee Mercer, of Dallas County, was found guilty of the Class A Misdemeanor on Wednesday, June 10, 2026. He was sentenced to 300 days in the Ellis County Jail. Although Mercer was legally eligible for probation, the jury rejected that option, requiring him to serve the straight jail time.
Traffic Stop Escalates to Abuse of Power
The conviction stems from an August 7, 2024, traffic stop. Evidence presented at trial showed that Mercer—while on duty, in full uniform, and driving a marked patrol unit—pulled over a female motorist in Cedar Hill. After conducting field sobriety tests, he arrested her on suspicion of Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) and transported her to Midlothian Methodist Hospital for a mandatory blood draw.
Upon returning to the patrol vehicle in the hospital parking lot, the woman informed Mercer that she had marijuana in her left pocket. At that point, Mercer and the woman kissed, and Mercer confiscated the marijuana. Investigators later determined that Mercer never booked the drugs into evidence, omitted any mention of the marijuana from his official police report, and later told the woman the contraband had been "disposed of."
After leaving the hospital, Mercer drove the handcuffed detainee to a Navarro College parking lot in Midlothian. He extinguished all of his patrol vehicle's lights, deactivated his department-issued body-worn camera, and asked the woman to perform oral sex. She refused his demands.
Pattern of Deactivating Cameras to Target Vulnerable Women
During the punishment phase of the trial, prosecutors exposed a broader pattern of predatory behavior, revealing at least two additional incidents of sexual harassment involving women Mercer had detained.
One of those women took the stand and testified that Mercer had groped her breasts during a traffic stop. In that instance, as well as the August 2024 offense, Mercer intentionally deactivated his body camera to conceal his actions and eliminate evidence.
"The citizens of Ellis County deserve to know they are going to be safe when they are pulled over," Assistant County and District Attorney Christopher Schwieg said following the verdict. "No one deserves to feel unsafe or scared due to the actions of those employed to keep the community safe. This was an egregious abuse of power, as the defendant was taking advantage of women when they are in vulnerable states."
The case was investigated by Cedar Hill Assistant Police Chief Colin Chenault and Texas Ranger Woody Gosser. Assistant County and District Attorneys Christopher Schwieg and Joshua Atilano prosecuted the case, with assistance from DA Investigators Steve Adams and Marlena Pendley.
