Ottawa man shot at vehicle near Starved Rock State Park, prosecutors say

An Ottawa man faces up to 15 years in prison after county prosecutors accused him of shooting at a moving vehicle Sunday near Starved Rock State Park.

Thomas J. Reynolds, 39, was charged Monday in La Salle County Circuit Court with one count of aggravated discharge of a firearm, a Class 1 felony carrying four to 15 years in prison.

Bond was set at $100,000, but Reynolds posted $10,000 cash and was released Sunday night, according to La Salle County Jail records.

Details still are emerging and the criminal information filed by the La Salle County State’s Attorney’s Office was limited to an allegation that Reynolds discharged a shot “in the direction of a vehicle he knew to be occupied.”

A location was not divulged, but scanner traffic did show first responders were summoned at 1:08 a.m. Sunday to 952 Route 71, near the state park, for a man injured in what a dispatcher described as being hit by a car. It was unclear whether the incident was directly related to the one for which Reynolds now is charged.

Law enforcement officials said state police were investigating; but a message left with District 17 state police headquarters was not returned and a report was not issued by the close of business Monday.

A message left for Reynolds on a cellphone number he supplied in a previous La Salle County case was not answered. An Ottawa lawyer who had represented Reynolds in a previous criminal matter said Reynolds had not been in touch with him regarding the current matter.