The violent profession prison busted for setting an harmless younger girl on fireplace on a Chicago practice had greater than 70 prior arrests to his identify — because the feds rage that he “had no enterprise being on the streets.”
Lawrence Reed, 50, was hit with a federal terrorism cost after he was caught on digicam dousing the 26-year-old girl in gasoline, chasing her by way of the practice automotive after which setting her alight on Monday evening, in keeping with authorities.
He’s due in federal court docket Friday for the assault — throughout which he allegedly shouted at his helpless sufferer, “Burn alive, bitch.”
It has since emerged that Reed had a disturbing prolonged rap sheet — and was out on pretrial launch on the time for an aggravated battery cost.
“Lawrence Reed had no enterprise being on the streets on condition that his violent prison historical past and his pending prison circumstances,” outraged ATF Particular Agent-in-Cost Christopher Amon mentioned.
“Reed had loads of second probabilities by the prison justice system and in consequence you’ve gotten an harmless sufferer within the hospital combating for her life.”
Information present that Reed had beforehand been arrested 71 instances in Prepare dinner County alone and convicted in 13 of these circumstances, WGN reported.
On the time of this week’s fiery horror, Reed was out on digital house monitoring stemming from an alleged incident the place he knocked a hospital social employee unconscious in August.
Prosecutors had requested for Reed to stay locked up however a choose overruled them — leaving him free to roam the streets.
Regardless of his prior run-ins, US Legal professional Andrew Boutros mentioned he wasn’t conscious of Reed ever legally being declared mentally incompetent.
Mayor Brandon Johnson was amongst these to rail towards the “absolute failure” of the system within the wake of Reed’s arrest.
“That is an absolute failure of our prison justice system in addition to our psychological well being establishments,” Johnson mentioned.
“This particular person was charged with dozens of felonies over the previous three many years. He was clearly critically mentally disturbed and was a hazard to himself and to others. The system that we had did not intervene. And now now we have a girl who’s combating for her life and I’m praying for her and her full restoration. It is a horrific tragedy that ought to have by no means occurred.”
The lady, who hasn’t been recognized, stays in hospital in vital situation with extreme burns to her head and physique, authorities mentioned.
The assault has drawn comparisons to the August stabbing on a commuter practice in Charlotte, North Carolina, that left 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska lifeless.
“This horrific assault is EXACTLY why we want communities to take security critically. Blue cities can not enable one other Iryna Zarutska to occur,” Duffy Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wrote on X.
