NEW ORLEANS — Authorities have stepped up their efforts to capture a 17-year-old who escaped from a state juvenile detention center two weeks ago. And after not being notified of Lynell Reynolds' escape for more than a week, the man he shot and paralyzed in a robbery is expressing grave concerns.
“Very on edge. Just nerve-wracking,” said Darrelle Scott, now 25. “So I’m mostly just staying inside.”
In addition to fear, Scott and his family also expressed anger at the New Orleans Juvenile Court Judge for cutting short Reynolds’ juvenile life sentence, which would have kept him in custody until he was 21.
The decision by Judge Candice Bates-Anderson to allow Reynolds into the “step down process” as part of an early release allowed him to be transferred to a non-secure facility in Lake Charles, from which he bolted with his belongings on Sept. 13.
“I begged the judge,” said Scott’s grandmother Dorothy White. “Judge, for the public, for the victim, please don't step Lynell down. He's not ready. And here we are, still, re-living this all over again.”
Reynolds was sentenced after being found responsible for shooting Scott in the back during a robbery, apparently lashing out because Scott only had $1. The attempted murder and armed robbery convictions came after a string of prior arrests for juvenile offenses didn’t slow him down.
White, sometimes accompanied by Scott and other family members, has attended court hearings every few months when Reynolds is brought before Anderson to assess whether he is sufficiently rehabilitated to qualify for an early release.
“Judge, you owe us an apology,” White said.
In a telephone interview, Anderson defended her decision to transfer Reynolds, saying he had fulfilled her requirements to get a high school diploma and learn a job skill.
“I thought he was ready,” she said. “After having a kid in front of me for four years, I had to make a decision.”
Anderson noted that teachers and social workers testified to Reynolds’ progress. She also pointed out that she rejected earlier requests to transition him out of custody.
“It wasn't a decision I made lightly,” she said. “If we didn’t give him the opportunity to get out at 18 or 19, then where would we be when he’s 21 and there would be no opportunity for programming.”
Scott and his family saw something very different at the court hearings.
“We knew this was going to happen and we told the judge that he wasn't ready,” Scott said. “But still, she let him out, gave him the chance to get out.
So here we are. We knew it was going to happen.”
When the wheelchair-bound Scott appeared at Reynolds’ highly emotional sentencing hearing in 2019, he offered as much grace as he could muster. Reynolds was 13 at the time, and had experienced his own unspeakable trauma, Two of his siblings were murdered by a mentally deranged uncle, who then killed himself. And when he was 10, another attack left his mother fatally shot and his father brain-damaged.
After the sentencing, Scott said, “I'm glad that justice was served. I hope he gets the help he needs. And I’m finally past everything that happened,”
But subsequent court hearings to assess Reynolds’ progress gave Scott and his family deep concerns. While teachers and social workers testified about his progress, he continued to rack up disciplinary write-ups and escape attempts, according to the family and district attorney’s office.
“You know, judge, there are children who can change,” White said. “But Lynell is not the one. And I don't see how you don't see it.”
“The chance of rehabilitation for him are done,” Scott said. “It shouldn't even be discussed, much less brought up.”
New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams has now joined other officials in raising the alarm about Reynolds' escape, urging the public to be on the lookout, and warning that anyone caught helping him “will result in severe legal consequences.”
Williams said his prosecutors consistently opposed Reynolds early release.
“The judge disagreed with me,” Williams said. “Judges have a right to do that. And it clearly was the wrong decision. And Lynell Reynolds has absolutely proven that by escaping and as I understand it, this is not his first attempted escape.”
Williams said he has enlisted help from the U.S. Marshals Service to help capture Reynolds. He also warned that anyone who helps Reynolds could face their own criminal charges.
“To those who may be aiding him in any way, we urge you to reverse course, consider your actions and cooperate with law enforcement,” Williams stated in a press release. “Failure to do so will result in severe legal consequences.”
Judge Anderson said she has now issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Reynolds' older sister, his guardian, after she did not respond to a subpoena to appear in court.
The state Office of Juvenile Justice did not respond to calls for comment.
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