Novi District Court Judge Travis Reeds has recused himself from a case over which he was presiding when he was threatened by the defendant.
Reeds recused himself during a hearing Wednesday, July 12, for defendant Jordan Worrall, 31, of New Hudson, who was arrested in Brighton last week after missing a court date and allegedly threatening to kill Reeds and his court-appointed attorney.
“I feel that it’s incumbent at this point upon me to recuse myself from this case and take no further action on it,” Reeds said. “Given the serious circumstances and the threats that were made, allegedly, by Mr. Worrall against myself and my family and the potential that I could be a witness in the case — it’s not even a close call that I need to recuse myself, from an ethical standpoint.”
Reeds asked his clerk to set a review in regards to Worrall’s competency evaluation, which was ordered May 4.
During his arrest in Brighton, Worrall allegedly broke several facial bones of a detective from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Apprehension Team.
The arrest marked the end of a 48-hour attempt by Worrall to allegedly evade police, beginning when he failed to appear in court. The mother of Worrall’s daughter called police to report he’d posted threatening remarks against the government, his attorney and Reeds.
The court was made aware of the threats and set a $1 million bond. On Wednesday, July 5, Worrall was seen driving his pickup truck through the courthouse parking lot on Grand River in Novi. He was pursued by Novi police through Wixom and Commerce Township before the pursuit was abandoned in Milford.
After multiple run-ins with police, including in Toledo, Ohio, detectives were notified Friday, July 7, around 9:30 a.m. that Worrall was seen walking down Manistee Street in a mobile home park in Lyon Township. He drove off before deputies arrived. He was arrested a few hours later in Brighton.
Prosecutors announced two additional felony charges against Worrall — making a false report or threat of terrorism and using a computer to commit a crime. Additional charges, police say, will be sought for allegedly assaulting the detective and resisting arrest.