A man arrested earlier this year for fleeing from a pursuing police car admitted his guilt during a preliminary court hearing before his upcoming trial.
Jason Allan Reynolds expressed regret for …
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A man arrested earlier this year for fleeing from a pursuing police car admitted his guilt during a preliminary court hearing before his upcoming trial.
Jason Allan Reynolds expressed regret for leading police on a chase south down Highway 20 then Highway 19.
In a plea deal, prosecutors dropped a charge of third-degree driving on a suspended license and credited him for time already served in the county jail for the eluding charge.
Reynolds was arrested Jan. 11 after police saw him in a red Dodge Charger passing multiple cars at once on Highway 20 near Milepost 4.
Radar clocked the Charger at 76 mph in the 50 mph zone.
The pursuing officer lost sight of the car when the highway turned hilly near Anderson Lake.
Backtracking, the officer found fresh tire tracks on a driveway in the 1200 block of Anderson Lake Road.
The Charger was found down the driveway, but a resident of the home said the vehicle wasn’t theirs.
Jefferson County deputies arrived, and a resident at a nearby house began signaling officers to the side of his house, where a man had just jumped the fence.
Reynolds was found hiding in the woods nearby, with the keys to the Charger in his pocket.
He told the arresting officer he was sorry, and said he didn’t want to go to jail because his wife and kid depended on him, according to the officer’s report.
“I’m a really law-abiding citizen and I take pride in that,” Reynolds told Jefferson County Superior Court Judge Keith Harper during his court appearance earlier this month.
“I made a horrible choice and had a moment of fight or flight because my wife is the sole income earner in our house,” he added.
He said he had been out of his blood-thinner medication and didn’t have anyone who could give him a ride to get his refill. Reynolds said his wife had been working double shifts and he couldn’t wake her.
“I just made a horrible personal choice and drove,” he said.
Reynolds said he didn’t pull over because he didn’t want to get arrested.
“I was afraid if I went to jail I might get the COVID,” he told the judge, and said he panicked.
“It was a really horrible personal choice and I am extremely ashamed and I apologize,” Reynolds said.
The judge sentenced him to time served.
“Good luck with everything,” Harper said.
