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WILKES-BARRE — A Kingston woman pleaded guilty Tuesday to tossing a blood-soaked towel at a Pennsylvania State Trooper moments after she refused to submit to a blood-alcohol test.
Nichole Lee Smith, 26, of Pulaski Street, entered the plea on charges of aggravated assault and DUI and was immediately sentenced to nine months probation and a $300 fine. In exchange for her plea, the assault charge was amended to a misdemeanor.
Smith, police say, was taken to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital under suspicion of DUI after state police found her 2001 Audi A3 overturned on Laurel Run Road in Laurel Run Borough on Sept. 27, 2015. She became agitated and argumentative at the hospital and, at one point, took down her pants and urinated in a hallway.
After refusing to participate in the blood draw, Smith threw a towel she used to wipe blood from her head that struck Tpr. Aaron Visneski in the right side of his face.
Luzerne County Judge David W. Lupas ordered Smith to pen a letter of apology to Visneski.