NEW ORLEANS — At the beginning of Darrelle Scott’s long legal ordeal after he was shot and paralyzed by Lynell Reynolds, Scott, and his grandmother Dorothy White advocated for leniency for the 13-year-old robber.
“He was for forgiving him,” White said. “He was for possibly him getting out before his time. But Lynell Reynolds didn't do the things that were asked of him. Instead, he did the opposite.”
White said Reynolds’ lack of remorse and poor disciplinary record in juvenile lockup led the family to have a change of heart.
White said the family’s position hardened even more last year when Reynolds escaped from a halfway house despite being on the cusp of being released. The teenager was the subject of a three-week manhunt before he was captured in San Antonio, Texas.
White vowed to tell the family’s painful story at every opportunity in court.
And that’s exactly what she did Monday, driving across the state to Lake Charles to testify at Reynolds’ sentencing. After Reynolds pleaded guilty to simple escape, he was given the maximum five-year sentence.
Calcasieu Parish Judge Clayton Davis ordered Reynolds to serve his time once he completes his current prison term for shooting Scott in the back after robbing him. That means Reynolds, now 19, won’t start serving his five-year sentence for the escape until he turns 21.
White has been to every one of Reynolds’ court hearings and she wasn’t about to miss this one.
“It was about a three-and-a-half-hour trip. But it was well worth it. Had it been further, I would still be there,” she said in an exclusive interview with WWL Louisiana Tuesday.
Scott was under the weather and couldn't attend, so White delivered a powerful victim impact statement on his behalf.
“These are the things that I brought up in court: That Darrelle's life is forever changed. Darrelle will never be able to run. Darrelle can't do the things that Lynell Reynolds can,” she said.
Reynolds attended the court hearing remotely by Zoom. Even though he pleaded guilty, White said she still didn't hear the words that would rekindle her forgiving instincts.
“Still, as of yesterday, when we were in court, he never would admit. He never would say he was sorry,” she said.
White called her grandson as soon as they left court.
“He said, ‘I'm so glad.’ He didn't think it was going to go that way,” she said.
White and her family’s trips to court are not over. Next week, Reynolds’ former teacher Angelo Filardo, 32, is scheduled for trial in New Orleans for accessory to escape, accused of driving Reynolds to Texas.
Dorothy White will be there.
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