By Shereen Siewert
A third grade teacher at Stettin Elementary School is facing criminal drug charges and an OWI citation after being arrested with various narcotics for which she did not have a prescription, according to Marathon County Court documents.
Renee Webb, 52, has been a teacher in the Wausau School District for 27 years. She faces misdemeanor charges of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, and was issued a citation for first-offense operating while intoxicated following an arrest in Rothschild.
Webb is listed as a third grade teacher in the Stettin Elementary School directory, but identifies herself as a fourth grade teacher on her personal page.
According to court documents, police were called at 12:46 a.m. to a convenience store at 1201 Park Plaza in Rothschild for a report of a suspicious vehicle that had been in the lot for about two hours. When officers arrived, they found Webb behind the wheel with the keys in the ignition.
Webb, of Kronenwetter, allegedly told police she had been at school until 10 p.m. but did not explain why she was parked at the convenience store.
Police say Webb was showing signs of possible drug impairment including rapid, exaggerated speech. After failing a field sobriety test, Webb was transported to a local hospital for a chemical test of her blood. Those results are not yet available.
Court documents state a K-9 officer searched Webb’s vehicle and discovered two different Schedule II narcotics: Hydromorphone hydrochloride and Amphetamine/Dextroamphetamine, along with various metal pieces commonly used for crushing pills and plastic straws containing white residue. Hydromorphone is a powerful prescription pain reliever, while the Amphetamine/Dextroamphetamine is used to treat symptoms of attention deficit disorder.
Police say Webb did not have prescriptions for the medication.
School officials have not yet responded to a request for a report on her current status with the district. An open records request for Webb’s personnel file and past disciplinary records is pending.
Webb signed a $200 signature bond April 18 at the Marathon County Jail, but was the subject of a bench warrant when she failed to show May 2 for an initial appearance in the case. Court records show she was brought to jail one day later, and was released May 6 after posting a $500 cash bond.
A bail/bond forfeiture hearing is set for May 14.
