Breckenridge Texan

By Carla McKeown and Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan

In an incident that made news around the world, three Breckenridge residents were arrested in Oklahoma on charges related to tying a 15-year-old girl to a tree at a residence north of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Johnny Lee James, age 40; Kayla Sharee Clark, age 42; and Linda Reynolds, age 63, are in the Washington County, Oklahoma, jail in Bartlesville. James and Clark were arrested on July 28, 2024, and are being held on $500,000 bond. James’ charges are for abuse, neglect, exploitation, or sexual abuse of child (aggravated assault), according to the Washington County Jail website. Clark is charged with enabling child neglect. The KWON-Bartlesville Newstalk Radio station reports that James and Clark are each facing six felony charges.

Reynolds was arrested on Aug. 2, and is being held on a $50,000 bond. She is charged with two felony counts of child abuse, according to the KWON website.

The three live in Breckenridge and were visiting relatives near Vera, Oklahoma, Washington County Sheriff’s Office investigator Sgt. Herb Cline said. Vera is located between Bartlesville and Tulsa in the northeastern part of Oklahoma.

Today, Aug. 14, the Breckenridge Police Department posted a notice on Facebook, explaining that the BPD and the District Attorney’s office are working with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office in the ongoing criminal investigation for child abuse. According to the BPD’s dispatch report, on Friday, Aug. 2, the BPD searched the residence on West Fourth Street in Breckenridge, where the family reportedly lived.

Breckenridge Police Chief Blake Johnson said the investigation is ongoing and, although there are still some things to investigate, he does not anticipate any other persons of interest here related to the case.

According to a Washington County Sheriff’s Office press release, on Sunday, July 28, deputies were dispatched to a residence near Vera after they were informed of possible child abuse and/or neglect of a 15-year-old female. At the location, they found the teenager tied to a tree in the yard, along with a piece of carpet where she had been sleeping.

“Deputies, along with the Department of Human Services Child Welfare arrived to find an adolescent female tied up in the yard and had apparently been sleeping on a remnant of carpet. Deputies learned the female was in the area visiting family with her family who reside in Texas. During the deputy’s investigation, it was determined the fifteen-year-old had been outside and secured to a tree with ratchet straps and had been for over 24 hours,” the July 29 press release stated.

According to the news release, WCSO investigators arrived and further learned the child’s father, Johnny Lee James, had allegedly tied her up for disciplinary reasons. The investigators also learned there have been investigations in Texas for questionable actions involving the father in the past. WCSO deputies interviewed Clark, who was identified as James’ girlfriend and who confirmed that James is the girl’s father. Clark also confirmed that she knew about the child being tied to the tree but said she did not call anyone or say anything because she was “frazzled,” the statement said.

The press release said family members, who were interviewed, said they were hesitant to call authorities because they are afraid of James.

The 15-year-old was taken to a hospital, where she was treated for injuries, the WCSO stated. The Department of Human Services (Child Welfare division) took the child into state’s custody, and several other children in the home were also taken into the custody of DHS Child Welfare.

According to probable cause arrest affidavits, a woman told deputies that the girl was tied up in the backyard and needed medical attention, with “a hole in her leg and lesions on her arms.” The 9-1-1 caller said the girl had been there for three days — since the family had arrived from Texas — and the caller was sneaking her food. The Washington County deputies saw the girl beside a shed and a chicken coop, sitting on a rectangular piece of carpet, leaning over at the waist with a bandage below her knee and a “ratchet-style tie down strap around her,” according to the affidavits.

The law enforcement officers spoke with a woman, who the 15-year-old identified as her nana, Linda Reynolds. At first, Reynolds “did not want to be truthful” and said she did not know about the girl’s condition, according to the affidavit. But she then allegedly admitted to knowing what was going on but was “too afraid” of James to say anything. The affidavit for Reynolds’ charges says that Reynolds lives with James and Clark in Breckenridge and that there were four children in their care. Additionally, the original 9-1-1 caller told the deputy that she has seen a change in the 15-year-old over the past couple of years and that Reynolds was aware of the abuse that was occuring in Oklahoma and in Breckenridge.

The affidavit for James’ arrest says that when James arrived at the house, he told deputies that he tied up his daughter because “she cannot be trusted and likes to lie,” the affidavit said. He reportedly said she was not tied down for long, maybe an hour while he was gone. James allegedly told deputies she was tied down on two separate occasions. Other accounts dispute that, indicating she was tied up for much longer, according to statements in the affidavits.

When James was asked why he tied the girl up, he stated this was the only option to keep her restrained because he did not know what else to do to help her, the affidavit said. James said he attributes the disciplinary issues to the girl wanting to live with her mother, and he also reportedly told deputies he “sees now he will need to figure out another solution” besides tying her down.

Both James and Clark have been arrested in Breckenridge in the past on unrelated charges.

The story has been reported by Inside Edition, the People magazine website, the Law & Crime website, the Independent news site in the UK, and other news sites around the country and beyond.

(Photos courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office website)