FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEWS ADVISORY
April 13, 2015
For More Information, contact:
Luther Strange
Mike Lewis (334) 353-2199
Alabama Attorney General
Joy Patterson (334) 242-7491
Claire Haynes (334) 242-7351
Page 1 of 1
AG ANNOUNCES THAT COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS
UPHOLDS CHILTON COUNTY COLD CASE MURDER
(MONTGOMERY)– Attorney General Luther Strange announced that the Alabama
Court of Criminal Appeals on Friday upheld the murder conviction of Marty Joe Taylor.
Taylor, 52, of Clanton, was convicted in Chilton County Circuit Court in June of 2014 for the
murder of Jenny Gail Hampton.
Evidence presented at trial showed that Jenny Gail Hampton’s body was discovered
off a rural road in Chilton County on October 18, 1998. Hampton’s body was taken to the
Department of Forensic Sciences, where investigators collected blood and DNA samples. An
autopsy revealed that Hampton died as a result of a single gunshot wound to the back of her
head.
After remaining unsolved for approximately 14 years, the case was reopened by the
Chilton County District Attorney’s office in September 2011. Thereafter, the DNA evidence
from Hampton’s body was entered into the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS)
database and Marty Joe Taylor was identified as a match. After three custodial interviews, in
which Taylor gave conflicting stories about the events leading up to Hampton’s death, he
was arrested and charged with Hampton’s murder.
The case was prosecuted at trial by Chilton County District Attorney Randall
Houston’s office. Taylor was sentenced to 40 years imprisonment and subsequently sought
to have his conviction reversed on appeal.
The Attorney General’s Appeals Division handled the case during the appeals process,
arguing for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals to affirm the conviction. The Court did
so in a decision issued on Friday, April 10.
Attorney General Strange commended Assistant Attorney General Madeline Lewis of
the Attorney General’s Appeals Division for her successful work in this case.
–30–
501 Washington Avenue * Montgomery, AL 36104 * (334) 242-7300
www.ago.alabama.gov
