LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A former Los Angeles Police Department senior lead officer pleaded not guilty today to charges that he extorted an LAPD detective he used to date and attacked her outside a Glendora restaurant.
Danny Lee Reedy, 56, is charged with one felony count each of extortion, extortion by threatening letter and injuring a girlfriend, along with three misdemeanor counts each of violating a domestic violence court order and possession of a firearm with a temporary restraining order.
The alleged victim is listed in the criminal complaint as “Ysabel V.”
In a lawsuit filed by LAPD Detective Ysabel Villegas against the department and Reedy, she acknowledged she had a consensual relationship with Reedy starting in 2013, but alleged it later turned violent and that he beat her at times. She alleged that when they broke up, he circulated explicit photos of her to other members of the LAPD.
Villegas also alleged the department did nothing when she reported the alleged misconduct and that she was transferred out of the Robbery-Homicide Division.
Beginning in May 2016, Reedy allegedly threatened on numerous occasions to release compromising photos of the woman unless she returned gifts that he had given her during their relationship. He then carried out the threat by sending the photos to the woman and others, Deputy District Attorney Rachel Greene alleged.
Reedy is also accused of hitting the woman outside a restaurant in Glendora, along with violating court orders for possessing firearms while the orders were in effect, according to the prosecutor.
He has since retired, but was on the force at the time of the alleged crimes, according to media reports.
Reedy is due back in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom March 18, when a date is scheduled to be set for a hearing to determine if there is sufficient evidence to allow the case to proceed to trial.
He could face up to six years in state prison if convicted as charged, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Attorney Lisa Bloom, who represents Villegas in the civil lawsuit, confirmed last month that a tentative settlement had been reached, but she declined to discuss financial details.
On Twitter last month, Bloom wrote, “We are pleased that Officer Reedy will at last face criminal accountability. It has been a long and painful process, but Ms. Villegas will continue to fully cooperate so that justice will be done.”
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