Published: December 29, 2006 04:42 pm            

Teen spikes drink to win lead in play

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — An understudy in a high school play has received two years probation for spiking the drink of a classmate who won the lead role.

Hours before opening night of L.D. Bell High School’s production of “Ha!” in February, Katherine Smith, 19, squirted an eyedropper of bleach into a Mountain Dew before giving it to a sophomore billed with the starring role, police said.

The sophomore didn’t take a drink because she thought it smelled funny, according to an arrest affidavit. School officials later alerted police.

In a plea agreement reached Thursday, Smith was sentenced on the charge of attempted assault of bodily injury. She was also fined $530, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Smith told school officials she had a lot of family visiting to see her perform. Janet Smith, her mother, told the school she already made a costume for her daughter because she thought she won the lead role.

Smith first told school officials she purchased the drink as a gift for the classmate but didn’t put anything in it. She surrendered to police in June after test results confirmed the drink contained bleach.

Attempts to reach Smith’s attorney, Sylvia Andrews, by telephone Tuesday were not successful.

        

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