Former Ga. college athlete accused of staging house party armed robbery back in jail on drug charges
An arrest affidavit obtained by Channel 2 Action News on Sunday revealed new details as to how a former college lacrosse player charged in a violent home invasion in 2019 was arrested last month on multiple felony charges following a traffic stop involving drugs and a firearm in Atlanta.
On May 30, deputies arrested Lauren Marie Rielly, 23, of Alpharetta, on charges of conspiracy to commit a felony and use of a communication facility to commit a crime.
Rielly and Lyndsey Kallish, both Life University athletes, were accused of driving two masked men to a house party at an Airbnb in November 2019.
Seven people were robbed and several were injured, including a DJ whose skull was fractured when he was pistol-whipped.
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Deputies also arrested and charged her passenger, Reginald Pierce, 25, of Atlanta, with multiple felonies, including trafficking in illegal drugs and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Rielly and Pierce were both denied bond and as of Monday morning, the pair remained behind bars in the Fulton County jail.
Rielly, who was once a member of Life University’s women’s lacrosse team, was already out on bond awaiting to stand trial after she was charged with multiple felonies for her alleged role in a violent home invasion in 2019 in southeast Atlanta.
Her former teammate, Lyndsey Kallish, was also charged in the 2019 incident and is currently out on bond, awaiting trial.
Channel 2′s Michael Seiden has been following the case for years and was the only reporter in the courtroom on Friday.
It was just before 8 p.m. on May 30 when an investigator with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office was preparing to turn at the intersection of Northside Drive and Marietta Street when the driver of the Gray Mercedes GLE in front of him failed to turn, cutting off a MARTA bus, which resulted in a traffic stop.
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“While speaking with Ms. Rielly ( driver), I could smell a very strong of marijuana coming from inside of the vehicle,” the deputy wrote in his arrest affidavit. " At that time, I returned to my patrol vehicle and requested another unit due to the odor of marijuana and the fact that I would be conducting a probable cause search of the vehicle.”
When the second deputy arrived at the scene, he began speaking with Rielly’s passenger, Reginald Pierce, who refused to exit the vehicle.
“I observed Mr.Pierce exit the vehicle and attempt to run Investigator Smith over,” the deputy wrote in the arrest affidavit. “Investigator Smith began to wrestle with Mr. Pierce at which time I deployed my department-issued Taser X-2 striking Mr. Pierce. Mr. Pierce continued to aggressively resist law enforcement officers by refusing to place his hands behind his back, attempting to get up off of the ground and by reaching in the direction of a loaded firearm which was on his person in his right pocket.”
Deputies at the scene reported that Pierce continued to fight with them and attempted to grab the Taser. Investigators say Pierce was in possession of a Glock, which had been altered with a “switch,” an illegal device that turns a semi-automatic gun into an automatic. The affidavit also stated that one of the investigators suffered a broken hand while trying to arrest Pierce, according to the affidavit.
“While speaking with Investigator Smith, I observed that he had lacerations to his hand and that his hand appeared to be swollen,” wrote an investigator.
When investigators searched the luxury SUV, they discovered a book bag containing numerous drugs.
“Investigators located a black book bag which contained a clear bag containing a green leafy substance, multiple prescription bottles which were either prescribed to other people or had prescription labels removed, promethazine, a child’s bottle and a clear containing multicolored tablets, according to the affidavit.
Investigators recovered 57.5 grams of MDMA, 62 grams of marijuana, 239 grams of oxycodone, 46.5 Percocet and 575.5 grams of promethazine. While searching the area, investigators also located a black Adidas backpack containing $10,020, a green leafy substance and additional narcotics, according to court documents.
When interviewed by investigators, Rielly denied having any knowledge of what was inside the backpack and she also told them that she was “scared.”
“Ms. Rielly stated that she was just taking Mr. Pierce to a restaurant and that she did not know what he had inside of her vehicle,” according to the arrest affidavit.
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A criminal background search revealed that Pierce had arrest warrants out of Fulton and Tattnall counties for several offenses, including armed robbery, violation of probation and participation in criminal street gang activity.
Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, who is presiding over the home invasion case, wrote a letter ordering her bond in that case also be revoked.
“Despite being on bond in this case for multiple serious violent felonies, defendant was granted a bond in her trafficking case,” Judge McBurney wrote.
Channel 2 Action News was the only station there when a Fulton County magistrate judge weighed granting bond for Rielly.
She waived her first appearance, but her attorney appeared on her behalf, asking the judge for a “reasonable bond.”
Judge Jeffrey Frazier ultimately denied bond, saying “she poses a substantial risk to reoffending and danger to the community.”
Rielly’s attorneys declined to comment. It is unclear how this new case will impact the home invasion case.
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