A University of Virginia student, who was arrested by Alcoholic Beverage Control agents for illegally buying beer when she really bought water, is suing the state and agents for $40 million.
According to the New York Daily News, Elizabeth Daly filed the $40 million suit alleging assault and malicious prosecution for being arrested and jailed after buying the water.
The Washington Post noted that on April 11 of last year, plainclothes ABC agents approached Daly outside of a supermarket in Charlottesville, Va. The agents believed that she had illegally purchased beer and was underage.
Daly was only at 20 at the time, but did not purchase beer. She had actually bought bottles of LaCroix sparkling water, which the agents mistook for a case of beer. Because the agents were not in uniform and one pulled a gun out, Daly attempted to flee the scene, but stopped and was arrested at the next intersection.
She was charged with two felonies for grazing the agents with her car and spent the night in jail. Prosecutors withdrew the charges in June and her record was completely expunged by October.
Daly’s lawsuit alleges that she now suffers a tremor in her right hand as well as intense anxiety and a host of other problems following the incident.
In November, the ABC admitted that the control officers violated department policy during the student’s arrest and said that corrective measures have been taken against the seven agents involved.