Cynthia Thomas McWilliams, a fourth-grade teacher at Fessenden Elementary School, was charged with possession of crack cocaine, marijuana

Cynthia Thomas McWilliams, a fourth-grade teacher at Fessenden Elementary School, was charged with possession of crack cocaine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia and tampering with evidence.Bond for 53-year-old McWilliams, who made her first appearance in front of a judge Saturday morning at the Marion County Jail, was set at $5,000.McWilliams, according to her school's Web site, is one of four fourth-grade teachers at Fessenden Elementary. McWilliams denied an interview request from the Star-Banner.Officials from Fessenden could not be reached for comment.At approximately 7:15 p.m. Friday, Deputy Damon Baxley stopped a gray Buick Lesabre on West Anthony Road, just north of State Road 326, because the car did not have its lights on in the rain, the deputy said.Thinking she may have shoved something under the seat, Baxley said he called for a K-9 handler to assist with the stop.K-9 deputy Jared Shealy arrived on scene and while walking around the vehicle, the dog detected the presence of drugs at or near the driver's side door, deputies said.McWilliams was asked to exit the car, and the K-9 deputy asked if she had anything illegal on her, deputies said. While turning her pockets inside out, deputies say a metal crack pipe fell from her right front pocket.Authorities say McWilliams changed her standing position so she could stand over the crack pipe in an effort to conceal it. Inside the crack pipe was a burnt steel-wool pad, deputies said.Also found in her right front pants pocket was a clear plastic sandwich bag that contained nine grams of marijuana, deputies said.Searching the car, officers say they found two pieces of crack cocaine - weighing less than a gram - between the driver's door and the seat.Deputies said McWilliams told them the drugs belong to her, but denied dropping or trying to conceal the crack pipe.Asked when was the last time she had used crack cocaine, deputies said McWilliams said, "Gosh, it's been a long time," the report noted.Deputies said that McWilliams said she and her husband are the only people who use the car, and the drugs do not belong to her husband.She then refused to talk further about the incident. McWilliams was then taken to the jail for processing.

Cynthia Thomas McWilliams, a fourth-grade teacher at Fessenden Elementary School, was charged with possession of crack cocaine, marijuana

Cynthia Thomas McWilliams, a fourth-grade teacher at Fessenden Elementary School, was charged with possession of crack cocaine, marijuana an...

Read more »