Hunter
12/24/22
A Cedar Rapids man got his wish this week when a 6th Judicial District Court judge married him to his longtime girlfriend….after she sentenced him to 18 years in prison.
The Gazette reports that 34-year-old Montel Reed initially asked deputies to take him to the Linn County Courthouse so that he could marry who he called his “longtime girlfriend,” although she was a different woman than the one he was living with when he shot and injured the woman’s ex-boyfriend in 2021.
The incident occurred May 3rd that year, when Reed reportedly fired multiple shots from a vehicle at Terrell Taylor, who was walking near the intersection of Blairs Ferry Road NE and North Pine Drive NE. He continued to fire at Taylor in the parking lot of Unity Center Church. Taylor received a gunshot wound to his arm, with another two hitting the church.
Taylor identified Reed by name and in a photo lineup as the man who shot him. Reed was living with Taylor’s ex-girlfriend and mother of his children at the time of the incident.
Reed was charged with attempted murder, but pleaded to intimidation with a dangerous weapon, willful injury causing bodily injury, reckless use of a firearm causing property damage, and 4th degree criminal mischief.
Judge Fae Hoover sentenced Reed to 18 years; he must serve at least five years before becoming eligible for parole. She agreed to perform the marriage after his initial request was denied due to too many prisoner transports that day.
Reed also faces child endangerment charges for hitting a 4-year-old in the face last month, causing him to fall to the floor, which resulted in a bloody nose. The trial on that charge is set for February 7th.