Stinky Finger Bad Touch Mel Reynolds arrested in Atlanta for violating bond in Chicago case

Former U.S. Rep. Mel Reynolds was released on his own recognizance Monday, hours after his arrest at an Atlanta airport on a warrant issued by a federal judge in Chicago for violating his bond on pending misdemeanor tax charges.

Reynolds was taken into custody after getting off a flight from Johannesburg, where he'd spent more than a month tending to a daughter he says is seriously ill, federal officials said.

An Atlanta magistrate judge later released him on his own recognizance, according to Joseph Fitzpatrick, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Chicago. He has been ordered to report in person to court officials in Chicago by Thursday afternoon, according to his lawyer, Richard Kling.

The warrant was issued April 1 by U.S. District Judge John Darrah in Chicago after Reynolds emailed a statement to news outlets declaring he intended to stay in South Africa in violation of his bond.

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