Wiscasset police officer injured with drug, blood-tainted needle

Wed, 09/13/2017 - 5:00pm

    During a routine traffic stop Sept. 10, a Wiscasset police officer was stuck by a bloody syringe that had been used for heroin, Police Chief Jeff Lange said.

    The driver, Jene Sherman, 50, of Dresden, was pulled over at Wiscasset Elementary School. She had an outstanding warrant for Theft by Unauthorized Taking or Transfer, Lange said.

    Sherman also had visible drug paraphernalia in her car, and at first denied having any drugs, according to Lange. The officer, whose name is being withheld by the department, searched the woman’s bag and was stuck by the needle. Both the officer and Sherman were rushed to the hospital, where tests for HIV and hepatitis were performed. The HIV test was a rapid-acting test, and came back negative. The hepatitis test results have not yet been returned.

    Sherman was arrested on the warrant and a new charge of Assault on a Police Officer. She was taken to Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset.