Molly Gillis of the LoRusso Law Firm. (Courtesy photo)

A woman who claimed a Lilburn police officer sexually assaulted her, only to have her claims belied by video evidence, was walloped with a $131,000 libel judgment after a bench trial in Gwinnett County.

But defendant Marsha Baldwin's day in court is not her last trip before a judge on the issue: She's still facing criminal charges for allegedly falsely reporting a crime and lying to police. 

Baldwin, who is in her early 30s, was initially pro se before picking up counsel for the trial. But by then, state Court Judge Pam South had struck her defenses for failure to respond to the suit or discovery, and the trial was solely on damages. 

"Judge South gave her numerous opportunities to participate in the litigation as she was pro se, but she never did. The judge finally struck her answer," said attorney Molly Gillis of the LoRusso Law Firm, who represented officer Andy Blimline.

Baldwin's lawyer, Althea Prince of Tucker's Prince Firm, said they were "disappointed by the judgment" and "concerned about the impact it might have on persons who consider filing citizen complaints with a police department following troubling encounters with police officers on the street."

Prince also said she was troubled by the size of the civil judgement, even though the criminal charges are still pending.

Prince said Baldwin "testified as best she could under the circumstances. Ms. Baldwin maintains that she is innocent of the charges in the ongoing criminal case and prays that a jury returns a not guilty verdict."

Gillis said Prince "tried an excellent case and was very professional at trial. But the evidence against her client was overwhelming."

According to Gillis and court filings, Blimline pulled Baldwin over in September 2016 for driving with an expired registration and discovered it was actually suspended.

"He went ahead and called the tow truck and asked her to get out of the car and told her she was being arrested for suspended registration. She was not happy, obviously," Gillis said.  

Blimline "did a brief pat-down, not a full-body pat-down, checked her waistband for weapons and put her in the car," said Gillis. Another officer arrived and put her in handcuffs.

"She never said a thing then," Gillis said. 

Baldwin called Blimline's captain at the Lilburn Police Department a week later and accused the officer of sexually assaulting her during the search by "touching between her inner buttocks and thighs, between and underneath her breasts, and in her vaginal area."

The captain uploaded the video from the car's dash camera and Blimline's body camera, and called in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to look into the allegations. 

After Baldwin told the investigating agent that the alleged groping took place while she was standing in front of Blimline's patrol car, he showed her video from the dashboard camera that showed no evidence to support her claims. 

Baldwin first said the video must have been altered or deleted; then she said the assault occurred to the side of the car.

The agent showed her Blimline's body camera footage which again showed no such incident, and she claimed that that footage too must have been altered or deleted, according to the complaint. 

The GBI had a forensics expert analyze the footage, and he reported it had not been tampered with. 

After determining that no crime had been committed, the GBI obtained arrest warrants for Baldwin, and she was subsequently indicted on charges of making false statements to the police and falsely reporting a crime.

Both offenses are misdemeanors carrying fines of up to $1,000 and can include a period of incarceration.

Baldwin's criminal lawyer, Lawrenceville solo Maryanne Blend, declined to comment on the case. 

In September 2017, LoRusso Firm principal Lance LoRusso filed a defamation suit on Brimline's behalf in Gwinnett State Court. 

South granted Brimline's motion to strike Baldwin's answer and for attorney fees and expenses last November, and she convened a damages-only bench trial earlier this month.

Baldwin "didn't do herself any favors at trial," Gillis said. "She showed no remorse. She was the opposite of apologetic."

On Aug. 9, South entered a judgment awarding Blimline $72,000 in damages, $25,000 in punitive damages and $34,434 in attorney fees and expenses, for a total of $131,424.

Gillis said the $72,000 represented one year's worth of salary and overtime for Blimline, who is now a safety officer with Gwinnett County Public Schools.  

"The damage to his reputation was very hard to measure," she said. 

Asked about the prospects of collecting the judgment, Gillis said Baldwin is employed.

"We are going to pursue every avenue for collection," she said.