A jury of seven women and five men deliberated for just over two hours Tuesday before finding Terrill E. Reynolds, 35, guilty of robbery in the first degree, armed criminal action, and unlawful possession of a firearm, following a two-day jury trial before Judge Byron Kinder in Cole County Circuit Court.
The evidence at trial established that Reynolds and two females called for a taxicab to take them from the McDonald's restaurant on Missouri Blvd. to the 800 block of East Elm St. in the early morning hours of Nov. 20, 2011.
Upon arrival, the females fled while Reynolds brandished a loaded semi-automatic handgun and demanded cash from the taxicab driver.
The driver complied and Reynolds counted the cash, approximately $425, in the driver's presence before fleeing.
The driver reported the robbery to a Jefferson City police officer.
Reynolds was found in an apartment at 808 East Elm St. over three hours later following officers' response to a disturbance call.
Persons in the apartment identified Reynolds and the handgun and testified that Reynolds made statements about robbing the cab driver.
The handgun was found hidden behind a hot water heater and pictures of the handgun taken 75 minutes before the robbery were found on Reynolds' phone.
Reynolds has multiple felony convictions which prohibit him from possessing a firearm.
"Taxicab drivers are particularly vulnerable to this type of crime when doing their jobs," said Cole County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jonathan Bertz, who tried the case for the State. "Our community despises dangerous and foolish behavior like the defendant's. Special thanks to detectives Jason Miles and Chad Stieferman and Officer Seth Wigle for all of their hard work."
Reynolds could face life in prison for the first-degree robbery and armed criminal action counts.
Sentencing will take place at a later date and he will remain in custody.