AUSTIN -- An Austin woman was arrested Monday on drug charges after she was allegedly found with methamphetamine and other drugs and a responding officer was pricked with a syringe filled with heroin.
According to police, Sarah Williams, 30, was sitting in her car in a construction site Monday night. Police said as they walked up to her car, Williams didn't move but officers noticed that she was concentrating on something in her lap and saw a handle of what appeared to be a knife in the car.
When officers knocked on the window, police said she made a move towards what was believed to be a knife. According to the arrest affidavit, when one of the officers opened the door of the car to restrain the woman, the officer felt a "prick" on the middle finger of his left hand. A fellow officer saw orange syringe cap fall off of the woman's lap and un-capped syringe which contained a dark, brown colored liquid was lying in plain view on the driver's seat.
Police said Williams identified the substance as heroin and the officers began to take precautions for exposure.
As police continued to search the car, they found the knife handle was actually the handle of a machete with a 1-foot long fixed blade, according to the arrest affidavit. Police said they found 34 used syringes with blood and heroin residue inside along with tourniquet, filters, pipes commonly used to smoke meth and marijuana paraphernalia.
According to the arrest affidavit, police found 2.55 grams of meth, approximately 6.93 grams of heroin and 0.02 ounces of marijuana. Williams was charged with a third-degree felony for possession of a controlled substance.
The Austin Police Department's policy manual states that officers must report any possible exposure to communicable diseases to their supervisor within 24 hours. A blood test follows, usually within 72 hours.
