For two days, Carolyn Reichle was allegedly trapped inside her own home with a man who had a gun. She couldn’t call police, couldn’t simply walk out and couldn’t risk letting him know she was trying to escape. Then a problem with their dog gave her one unexpected reason to leave the house. What happened next at a Florida veterinary clinic looked completely ordinary to everyone around her—until a staff member opened a tiny handwritten note and realized what was really happening.
Two Days Inside the House
The ordeal began at the couple’s home in DeLand, Florida, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office. Reichle told deputies that Floyd had repeatedly assaulted her on a Wednesday night, threatened her at gunpoint and physically prevented her from leaving the house. By Thursday, she was suffering from a head injury badly enough that she spent much of the day in bed.
The situation was especially dangerous because Floyd was not simply accused of using violence once and then leaving. According to the sheriff’s account, Reichle remained under his control inside their home, with the threat of the gun hanging over the situation. The police later said she was visibly injured when they encountered her, with injuries including a head wound and a black eye.
By Friday afternoon, Reichle had apparently realized that she needed to create an opportunity outside the house. The solution was her dog. She convinced Floyd that the animal was sick and needed to be taken to a veterinarian, giving her a legitimate reason to leave home without immediately alerting him to what she was planning.
A moment of pure courage. See how a simple, secret note changed everything for a veterinarian. You won’t believe what happened next!
The Trip to DeLand Animal Hospital
Reichle and Floyd arrived at DeLand Animal Hospital with the dog on Friday, May 25, 2018. The trip did not make her safe yet, because Floyd insisted on accompanying her and, according to authorities, was carrying a loaded handgun. The place she had chosen as her possible escape therefore contained the same immediate threat she had faced at home.
At some point inside the animal hospital, Reichle asked to use the bathroom. That gave her the brief separation she needed. Instead of making a phone call or confronting Floyd, she passed a handwritten message to a member of the veterinary staff, asking them to contact police without letting him know what she had done.
The message was direct: “Call the cops. My boyfriend is threatening me. He has a gun. Please don’t let him know.” There was no elaborate escape plan behind it—just a few words written at a moment when she needed another person to understand the danger immediately. The employee recognized the seriousness of the situation and called law enforcement.
Police Arrived Before He Knew What Happened
The response came quickly. DeLand police officers arrived at the animal hospital and found Floyd still there with a loaded handgun, while Reichle was crying and visibly injured. Officers detained him at the scene and recovered the weapon before the situation could escalate further.
Once Floyd was under police control, Reichle could finally explain what had allegedly happened inside the home. Deputies said she told them that Floyd had repeatedly beaten her, threatened her with the gun and physically prevented her from leaving. The police investigation then expanded from what had happened at the clinic to what had happened over the previous several days at the couple’s house.
The animal hospital had therefore become more than a place to take a sick dog. It was the first location where Reichle had access to people outside Floyd’s control. Her ability to get a message into the hands of one of those people changed the entire situation within minutes.
The House Contained Another Warning
Investigators did not stop at the animal hospital. Deputies searched the couple’s home on South Amelia Avenue and found two bullet holes in a wall, adding another physical detail to Reichle’s account of the violence. The sheriff’s office said the gun had apparently gone off during a struggle between the couple.
That discovery gave investigators something more concrete to examine beyond Reichle’s injuries and statement. Her account described a relationship that had become physically dangerous, while the bullet holes suggested that the firearm had already been discharged inside the home. The case therefore involved more than an argument that had turned heated; authorities were investigating allegations involving a gun, physical assault and confinement.
The police were also dealing with a suspect who already had a criminal history. Global News reported that Floyd had previous charges dating back years, while local reporting said he had been arrested more than a dozen times. He was also identified by authorities as a convicted felon, making the presence of a loaded firearm an additional serious issue.
Jeremy Floyd Faced Multiple Charges
Floyd, 39, was arrested and faced a list of charges stemming from the incident. Authorities cited domestic-violence-related charges, aggravated assault with a firearm, false imprisonment and firearm and ammunition possession by a convicted felon, among other allegations. He was held without bond according to the reporting available at the time.
The case illustrates the difference between the frightening moment at the animal hospital and the broader legal case that followed. Police had a woman who said she had been held against her will and threatened with a firearm, physical injuries that were visible when officers arrived, a loaded weapon recovered at the scene and bullet holes discovered during a search of the home. Those details became part of the evidence surrounding the allegations against Floyd.
For Reichle, however, the most important outcome had happened before the formal charges were even laid. She had managed to get a message to somebody outside the relationship without Floyd discovering what she was doing. That small opening allowed police to intervene while he was still armed and before she had to attempt a more dangerous escape on her own.
Why the Note Mattered So Much
The note has become the most memorable part of the case because it shows how an escape can begin with something extremely small. Reichle did not have control over the house, the gun or the person who was keeping her there, but she did have one brief opportunity to communicate with someone who was not under Floyd’s control. She used that opportunity carefully and trusted the employee to understand what was at stake.
The setting mattered too. A veterinary clinic is an ordinary place, which may have made it easier for Reichle to get through the front door without raising suspicion. Floyd believed they were there because their dog needed medical care, while Reichle was using the same trip for an entirely different purpose: finding someone who could summon help.
The employee’s reaction was just as important. Rather than treating the note as an uncertain complaint or waiting to see what happened, the staff member immediately contacted police. When officers arrived, the danger described on the paper was still present—a loaded handgun was with Floyd.
A Quiet Escape Instead of a Dramatic One
There was no high-speed chase and no dramatic confrontation in the street. Reichle’s escape depended on staying calm long enough to find a safe opening, using the reason for the veterinary visit to create that opening and then getting a few words into the right person’s hands. The entire plan depended on one staff member recognizing that a routine visit was actually an emergency.
That is what makes the story so striking years later. The most dangerous moment was not necessarily the moment police arrived; it was the period beforehand, when Reichle had to remain beside an armed man while trying to communicate without being discovered. One mistake could have revealed the plan before help arrived.
Instead, the message reached the right person. Police arrived. Floyd was arrested. And Reichle finally got out.
What Happened in the End?
After her rescue, Reichle was taken to Florida Hospital DeLand for treatment. Authorities said she had a head wound, a black eye, bruises and scratches. Floyd remained in custody and faced multiple criminal charges connected to the alleged abuse and possession of a firearm as a convicted felon.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood publicly praised Reichle’s courage and the response of the veterinary staff, DeLand police and sheriff’s deputies. The case quickly became known because of the unusual method she used to ask for help: instead of openly confronting the person allegedly holding her captive, she relied on a stranger and a handwritten note.
In the end, the most important detail was also the simplest. Reichle had been given a reason to leave the house because her dog needed help, and she turned that ordinary trip into an opportunity to save herself. A visit to an animal hospital became the place where the outside world finally learned what was happening behind the closed doors of her home.
Carolyn Reichle went to DeLand Animal Hospital because she had convinced Jeremy Floyd that their dog needed medical attention. According to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, she was actually using the trip as a chance to escape after allegedly being beaten, threatened with a gun and prevented from leaving home for two days. Her handwritten note brought police to the clinic, where they found Floyd with a loaded handgun and arrested him. What began as an ordinary veterinary visit became the narrow opening that finally allowed Reichle to reach someone who could help.
This story draws on Global News’ report about Carolyn Reichle’s escape from Jeremy Floyd, including the handwritten note she secretly passed to veterinary staff asking them to call police. Source: Global News — https://globalnews.ca/news/4236079/florida-woman-abuse-note-vet/
