The redhead who led LA cops on a wild 110mph car chase that ended with a plunge into the Pacific is seen for the first time since the incident in exclusive DailyMail.com pictures.
Jessica Reynolds, 39, has been locked up at the Century Regional Detention Facility since her case was referred to a mental health court two weeks ago and criminal proceedings suspended.
Lawyers for the mom-of-two had successfully argued that she was suffering from a ‘psychotic episode’ during the bizarre early morning incident on March 16.
The end of the chase, which was filmed by horrified beach goers, saw Reynolds race her silver BMW across the sand at Venice Beach before splashing into the waves – leaving her two Boston terrier dogs, Rebel and Jewel, in the sinking vehicle.
Jessica Reynolds, 39, has been locked up at the Century Regional Detention Facility since her case was referred to a mental health court two weeks ago and criminal proceedings suspended
After opening the driver's door Reynolds frantically tried to swim away from cops
Instead of stopping, cops say Reynolds took off and eventually drove straight into the ocean at Venice Beach
Reynolds then swam out to sea and was picked up by an LA County Sheriff’s boat, arrested and taken to hospital on a 5150 psychiatric hold.
The 39-year-old was subsequently charged with one felony count of evading police while disregarding safety and two of animal cruelty. She could face up to three years in prison if convicted.
But during a hearing at the Hollywood Mental Health Court on Wednesday, Reynolds was found to be mentally fit to stand trial, with Judge Robert Harrison sending her case back to the criminal system.
The 39-year-old was subsequently charged with one felony count of evading police while disregarding safety and two of animal cruelty. She could face up to three years in prison if convicted.
Reynolds, who looked disheveled in a pair of LA County Jail issue blue sweatpants and a bright yellow top, did not speak during the brief appearance and looked down at her feet as she was led into court.
She faces a fresh hearing on Thursday in El Monte, a suburb 15 miles east of LA, where Judge Robert Villeza will decide how to proceed with the case.
Her lawyer Saiid Arjomand declined to comment when approached by DailyMail.com outside court.
Reynolds had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges with her former lawyer Alan Gonzalez telling court that the incident was ‘a cry for help’.
He explained: ’She was having a psychotic episode. She did drive her car into the ocean. You can interpret this as a cry for help. No-one was injured….and the dogs were rescued.’
Gonzalez said that before the incident, Reynolds had been in a ‘toxic relationship’ involving drugs and she had gone through a divorce in which she had lost custody of her son.
Reynolds, who looked disheveled in a pair of LA County Jail issue blue sweatpants and a bright yellow top, did not speak during the brief appearance and looked down at her feet as she was led into court
Reynolds had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges with her former lawyer Alan Gonzalez telling court that the incident was ‘a cry for help’
Reynolds, who had just arrived in California at the time of the crash, subsequently moved to Oregon where she was living at a Christian residential rehab and working a $22-an-hour job in an Oregon warehouse before being taken into custody on a $50,000 bond during her last court appearance.
The wacky series of events that led to Reynolds’s arrest started late at night on March 15 in El Monte where police tried to pull her over for speeding.
Instead of stopping, cops say Reynolds – who has multiple recent convictions for speeding and fleeing police in her native New Mexico – took off.
Heading west she eventually hit Washington Boulevard in Venice, which dead ends near the Venice pier, and drove straight into the ocean just a couple of minutes after midnight.
The 39-year-old was charged with one felony count of evading police while disregarding safety and two of animal cruelty
After opening the driver's door Reynolds frantically tried to swim away from cops till the rescue boat tossed her a flotation donut which she was able to grab to get aboard safely.
The rescuers managed to save the two-year-old Boston Terriers before the SUV was dragged away by the current, according to a police report.
The next morning, beachgoers unaware of the incident arrived to find a car being towed from the water up onto the land.
The front window was shattered and mounds of sand could be seen in the front and back seat. Skid marks in the sand could also be seen.
When DailyMail.com spoke to Reynolds’s ex-husband, Michael Hufstedler, 44, he revealed that just last July, the two had finalized a messy, long-drawn-out divorce in which he was awarded sole custody of their 12-year-old son.
'We were totally in love. I thought I'd found the woman of my life,' said Hufstedler, who used to run a real estate appraisal firm with Reynolds in Alto, New Mexico.
'She cheated on me with one of the people that worked for me. Then she threatened to commit suicide. I live in a different state now, I've retreated totally.'
Hufstedler added that the two dogs involved in the incident are his though there was no mention of who should keep the animals after the divorce.
She was seen paddling in the water, while deputies aboard a Los Angeles Sheriff's Department vessel attempted to rescue her by tossing a flotation donut into the ocean
One of the dogs managed to get out of the vehicle and swim to shore while the second was rescued by law enforcement
Her ex Michael Hufstedler claimed the two dogs involved in the chase belonged to him. The two-year-old Boston Terriers, Rebel and Jewel, were taken into custody by Animal Control after being rescued at the scene and are currently being held at a shelter in West Los Angeles
As for Reynolds’s prior run-ins with the law in New Mexico, in October 2019 she pleaded no contest to a criminal speeding charge of more than 30mph over the limit. The case was deferred and dismissed, according to court records.
She pleaded no contest to a September 2020 charge of resisting an officer, which was again deferred and dismissed – though the court later issued a warrant for her arrest after she failed to pay her fine and fees.
Reynolds pleaded guilty to speeding 16-20 mph over the limit, with no proof of insurance in November last year. Again, the charges were deferred and dismissed.
Another warrant was issued in December last year after she failed to show up for a court hearing, but by January she had met all her legal obligations, according to the docket.
Reynolds was also charged last November with careless driving and 'leaving the scene of an accident involving damage to a vehicle'. But according to court records, she has not yet entered a plea in that case.
