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Last Updated: Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 07:53 PM
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Teen accused of putting bleach in rival’s drink

Katherine A. Smith, 18, surrendered to police after being accused of spiking a 15-year-old theater student’s drink with bleach because she wanted the lead role in a school play.

A teenager accused of spiking a fellow theater student’s drink with bleach because she wanted the lead role in a school play surrendered to authorities.

Katherine A. Smith, 18, turned herself in Wednesday, more than a week after a warrant was issued for her arrest. She was charged with tampering with a consumer product, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison, and was released on $2,500 bail.

A message left Thursday at Smith’s home seeking comment was not immediately returned.

Smith is accused of putting bleach in Mountain Dew and then handing the drink to a 15-year-old in February, a day after the opening of L.D. Bell High School’s production of “Ha!” — a trio of one-act comedies. Test results confirmed that the drink contained components of bleach, according to police reports.

The 15-year-old noticed the odor and told an assistant principal, who contacted police. Police said Wednesday that the investigation took more than three months because of problems with testing the drink.

Smith was placed in an alternative school after she was questioned in the incident and did not participate in prom or graduation, said Hurst-Euless-Bedford district spokeswoman Judy Ramos.