FORT PAYNE, Ala. — A northeastern Alabama woman was sentenced to life in prison after she pleaded guilty to murder after she was accused of kidnapping and then forcing a woman off the side of a canyon.
Loretta Carr, of Fort Payne, received the life sentence on Thursday for the 2021 murder of Mary Elizabeth Isbell, with a 20-year sentence for kidnapping the victim added, DeKalb County District Attorney Summer Summerford said in a news release posted to social media.
Carr originally had been charged with capital murder, and prosecutors originally said they would pursue the death penalty if it went to trial, WBMA reported. The trial had been set for March 30, 2026, according to the television station.
Carr entered the plea on Wednesday.
Carr, along with her daughter, Jessie Eden Kelly, allegedly confronted Isbell at her residence on Oct. 18, 2021, accusing her of having a relationship with Kelly’s “significant other,” Summerford said, according to WAAY.
Court documents stated that Carr and Kelly attacked the victim, kidnapped her and took the woman to Wolf Creek Overlook at Little River Canyon in Fort Payne. Prosecutors said that Carr tied herself with a rope to the barrier at the overlook, forced Isbell to climb over it, and then forced her off the side of the canyon.
Isbell’s body was found in the canyon beneath the overlook in 2023, according to WAAY.
Kelly pleaded guilty to Isbell’s murder in August 2025.
“This is an example of a senseless act destroying a family,” Summerford said in a statement. “A mother is left without a daughter, sisters are left without their sibling, and a son is left without his mother.
“This family has been through so much, but they have walked with us and law enforcement throughout this process and have been so responsive and helpful. Please continue to pray for this family as they continue to figure out how to go through life without their loved one.”
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