Bannick was taken to the hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.
Tavares police said they are releasing difficult-to-watch footage of an officer who is now doing OK as a warning about how dangerous fentanyl can be.
Courtney Sullivan with the Tavares Police Department said Officer Courtney Bannick found narcotics on a passenger during a traffic stop Monday night.
“Whenever she saw it rolled up in a dollar bill, she noticed that. She just barely opened it and saw that it was narcotics. Closed it quickly,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan said Bannick wore gloves as she always did.
The officers agreed to test the substance back at the department, trying to avoid exposure because it was windy.
“Next thing you know, she was trying to speak on the radio and you could hear in the radio traffic almost like she was choking,” Sullivan said.
