A Seymour woman was arrested on heroin and syringe possession charges after she was stopped for having expired license plates.
Nashville Police Officer Keith Lawson stopped Whitney N. Smith, 28, at the Speedway station on July 7. She told the officer she did not have her driver’s license on her, but she could give them verbal information. She said she knew the plates were expired, but she had just bought the vehicle two weeks ago, the police report said.
She had a male passenger with her. Both of them had suspended driver’s licenses, and Smith had a warrant out of Johnson County for a probation violation, Lawson learned.
Lawson told Smith that she was under arrest and that her vehicle would be towed. The passenger was allowed to call for a ride to pick him up.
Another officer at the scene reported seeing Smith stuff something next to the driver’s seat. During the vehicle inventory, the officers found an uncapped syringe in that area. When the officers opened the trunk, Smith began screaming from the patrol car and asked to speak with Lawson, the report said.
She told the officers they would find a pink can in the trunk and that it would have needles and heroin in it. She said she would take responsibility for the contents, but that the syringe by the seat was not hers, the report said.
Inside the can, officers reported finding six more syringes and a foil packet with a brown, rock-like material in it. Smith said it was heroin. Smith told the officers they could not charge her with syringe possession, since she got the syringes from a needle exchange, the report said.
The officers also reported finding a straw cut in half, and a burnt spoon with residue on it, the report said.
Smith was taken to the Brown County jail. On July 9, she was charged with possession of a narcotic drug, a Level 6 felony; unlawful possession of a syringe, a Level 6 felony; and driving while suspended, a Class A misdemeanor.
