High Springs Woman Arrested for Child Neglect

AINESVILLE – A 39-year-old High Springs woman was arrested Dec. 15, 2025, after customers and staff at Bass Pro Shops asked a deputy to check on her, reporting she had a small child with her, appeared to be having trouble walking and seemed to be talking to herself, according to an Alachua County Sheriff’s Office report.

An Alachua County sheriff’s deputy responded at about 7:51 p.m. Monday to the store at 2650 Bass Pro Shops Boulevard, Gainesville, after several people expressed concern about the woman’s condition and the presence of a young child.

The deputy made contact with Jennifer Jean Reeder, who reportedly said she had driven to the store with her child to see Santa and had taken two Klonopin pills. While speaking with Reeder, the deputy reported seeing a plastic bag in the center console area of her vehicle of the type commonly used to package illegal narcotics.

Reeder told the deputy she was trying to return home with her daughter but said her vehicle would not start, according to the report.

After Reeder gave consent for a search of the vehicle, deputies reportedly found 0.2 grams of methamphetamine and two unlabeled prescription bottles containing Klonopin pills. The plastic bag previously seen in the center console was not located during the search. The deputy noted that the drugs and prescription bottles were easily accessible to the child.

Following Miranda warnings, Reeder reportedly identified the methamphetamine as “ice” and handed the deputy two glass pipes and a plastic bag containing 1.1 grams of a substance that tested positive for cocaine, which she identified as “crack.”

Reeder was charged with child neglect without great bodily harm, four counts of possession of a controlled substance without a prescription and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Her full criminal history was not immediately available, but records indicate she has at least 24 felony convictions related to theft and fraud from more than a decade ago and a misdemeanor conviction for possession of drug paraphernalia in March 2025.

Jonathan Ramsey set bail at $42,000 on the new charges.

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