UPDATED: Homeless woman arrested for stabbing woman with broken bottle

Staff report

UPDATE: Reynolds was released after the victim provided officers with a video of the incident on July 17; the video reportedly showed Vanette Anderson stabbing the victim, and she is the witness in the article below who told an officer that Reynolds stabbed the victim. Anderson has been arrested for aggravated battery and providing a false statement during a felony investigation.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Sierra Janae Reynolds, 25, was arrested early this morning for allegedly stabbing a woman with a broken glass bottle at Campus Walk Apartments.

At about 10:50 p.m. on June 29, Gainesville Police Department officers responded to Campus Walk Apartments (914 SW 8th Avenue), where the victim said she had been visiting her sister at the apartment complex when she got into an argument with another woman (referred to as the witness) regarding a previous incident. The victim said that while she was arguing with the witness, she saw Reynolds breaking a glass liquor bottle against the side of the building and holding the broken neck of the bottle in her hand.

The argument between the victim and the witness, which reportedly had nothing to do with Reynolds, escalated into a physical fight, and the victim said she suddenly felt blood dripping down her face and immediately retreated into her sister’s apartment.

Multiple witnesses told officers that they saw Reynolds break a bottle and walk toward the victim.

The witness who was involved in the fight told an officer that she saw Reynolds break a bottle and swing the broken neck at the victim two or three times. She said that after Reynolds hit the victim, she took the broken bottle neck from Reynolds and threw it on the ground. She said Reynolds was not provoked by anyone, and she did not know why Reynolds attacked the victim. She also said she knows Reynolds well, and earlier in the day, she had heard Reynolds talking about cutting someone.

GPD’s Forensic Crime Unit reportedly found a shattered vodka bottle in the walkway, with the broken bottle neck about 10 feet away; blood was spattered throughout two apartments.

Post Miranda, Reynolds reportedly said she didn’t remember anything except that she was going to a friend’s house and then saw blood everywhere. However, she later changed her story and said she had drunk an entire bottle of vodka that evening, and after finishing the bottle, she kept it for protection. The officer noted that she did not specify what she was protecting herself from, but she stated repeatedly that she kept the bottle for protection.

Reynolds also reportedly said that she broke the vodka bottle while the victim and the witness were arguing, and then she swung it several times in an attempt to get everyone’s attention and stop the argument. She said someone grabbed the broken bottle neck from her, but she could not say who it was.

When she was asked whether she had hit the victim with the broken bottle neck, Reynolds reportedly said she did not remember hitting anyone because she may have “blacked out.” She said she takes medication for a mental health diagnosis, but she was unable to identify the medication. She said she did not intend to hurt anyone and was just trying to stop the fight.

The victim sustained injuries to her forehead and chest and required 11 stitches.

Reynolds, whose address is listed as GRACE Marketplace, has been charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. She has a juvenile conviction from 2019 but no adult criminal history. Judge Joy Danne set bail at $15,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.