A disabled Marine veteran who was charged after painting an apartment complex picnic table won a civil lawsuit against the complex's owners.
The misdemeanor destruction of property charge filed against Mickey Triplett was dropped at the prosecutor's request in August 2015. The case prompted community outcry, and several veteran's groups stepped forward to help Triplett, who was also kicked out of his Potomac Ridge apartment after painting the table.
Jason Pelt, who is also a Marine veteran, stepped forward to represent Triplett in a civil malicious prosecution case against the apartment complex's management.
A judge awarded Triplett $6,500 to compensate for the pain and suffering of being wrongly accused of a crime. The judge ruled the complex never should have called police, because no crime was committed.
