Second woman accused of pushing victim off cliff now in jail in Alabama

Second woman accused of pushing victim off cliff now in jail in Alabama

A 22-year-old woman charged with capital murder is now behind bars in Alabama to face charges that she participated in the murder of a woman two years ago in DeKalb County.

Jessie Eden Kelly, 22, was booked into the Cherokee County Jail on July 22, according to jail records. Kelly, along with her mother Loretta Kay Carr, 45, of Fort Payne, was charged last month with capital murder-kidnapping in the October 2021 death of Mary Elizabeth Isbell.

Kelly was arrested in Pennsylvania on June 25 on a felony charge of arrest prior to requisition, and she faces felony burglary and stealing charges in Douglas County, Mo.

The remains of Isbell, who had been reported missing for almost two years, were identified June 30, on what would have been her 39th birthday, after their discovery in Little River Canyon National Park.

Isbell was reported missing by her ex-husband on Dec. 27, 2021. Detectives with Hartselle police used phone records to determine she had been living in the DeKalb County area on Lookout Mountain.

A search of her residence and vehicle turned up physical evidence – including signs of a struggle – which was entered into a national database, authorities said.

The discovery of her remains came after a tip last month. Authorities believe Isbell’s death occurred sometime between the evening of Oct. 18 and the early morning of Oct. 19, 2021.

The three women knew each other through a man, an investigator said following Carr’s arrest.

Though investigators suspected Isbell’s body was somewhere in the area of park, they were unsure of its exact location until they received information from one of the suspects.

A hearing is scheduled for Carr on Wednesday. Her lawyers earlier this month sought body camera footage from the search of her residence and questioning, and want to bar statements from lawyers and authorities on the case, as well as cameras from her trial.

Prosecutors will seek the death penalty.