Columbus jury delivers verdict at murder trial for death of Renee Eldridge
A Muscogee County jury in the trial of a man who faced charges including felony murder and rape in the death of a Columbus woman a decade ago has reached a verdict.
Stacey Gray, 55, stood trial during the past two weeks in the death of 25-year-old Renee Eldridge, whose body was found July 7, 2015 in Osanippa Creek in Chambers County, Alabama.
Gray faced charges of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, aggravated assault, kidnapping and rape, according to the bill of indictment.
The jury found Gray guilty of one count of felony murder, aggravated assault and rape. The jury found Gray not guilty of malice murder, one count of felony murder and kidnapping.
The jury began their deliberations Tuesday before being sent home for the Thanksgiving holiday at noon Wednesday. The jury reached their verdict just after 4 p.m. Monday.
Judge Carolyn “Tippi” Cain Burch didn’t announce the sentencing date.
DA reacts to verdict
Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit District Attorney Don Kelly told the Ledger-Enquirer it’s a “great relief “ to have this verdict.
“I believe in the criminal justice system,” he said. “I wouldn’t do this work if I didn’t believe in it.”
Kelly said he thinks the jury did a great job and he does not have any problems with the jury’s verdict.
“I felt like we were the last opportunity for this family to get justice,” he said. “So I’m very relieved that we were able to do that for the family.”
Kelly said Gray will face a sentence of life in prison with or without the possibility of parole for the felony murder conviction, one to 20 years in prison for the felony aggravated assault conviction and a mandatory life sentence with a minimum of 25 years to serve for the rape conviction.
Brother of Renee Eldridge reacts to verdict
James Eldridge, brother of Renee Eldridge, told the Ledger-Enquirer he was feeling “joy” about the verdict.
It felt like “the weight of the world has been lifted off of us,” he said
“We’ve walked for 10 years worried about the outcome of this,” Eldridge said.
When asked about the sentence Stacey Gray will face, Eldridge said, “It makes us feel good, just so that we know that there’s no chance of him hurting anyone else or doing what he did to my sister to anyone else.”
Assistant investigator reacts to verdict
Capt. Christopher Daniel, in command of the Criminal Investigations Division with the Valley Police Department, assisted with the investigation into Eldridge’s death.
Daniel was on the scene the day Eldridge’s body was found in the creek. He said it “feels good” to have the verdict.
“He’s finally gotten the justice that he should have received a long time ago, and I’m very happy for the family,” Daniel told the Ledger-Enquirer.
When asked what made him drive over an hour each day to and from Valley for the trial, Daniel said, “At Valley PD, we believe in finishing what we started. So it was wanting to see this through to the very end.”
Daniel said he was still in shock after the verdict and he was hoping for this verdict.
“I don’t think it’s really set in that we won,” he said, “but I can say that I’m definitely very happy.”
Defense attorney reacts to verdict
Southwest Georgia Regional Public Defender Angela Dillon said she always is a “little disappointed” when the verdict is not a full acquittal.
“I think there’s some good issues for appeal,” she said. “There was a statute of limitations issue on the aggravated assault, which the jury convicted him of.”
Dillon said her team will not be involved in the appeals process, but she said they will file the motion for new trial and will make sure Gray gets appellate counsel.
She said she appreciates the jury’s verdict.
“Clearly, they listened to arguments, and ,really, you can’t ask for more than that, that they listened to what you have to say,” Dillon said.
Opening arguments and mother’s testimony
In his opening statements of the trial Nov. 18, Kelly said evidence would show Gray was waiting for Eldridge in her home, where he attacked, raped and killed Eldridge before taking her to Chambers County and threw her body, tied to a cinder block, into Osanippa Creek.
Kelly said Gray had been dating Eldridge’s mother and at one point had a key to the home Eldridge shared with her mother.
Eldridge’s mother, Nancy Gray, who shared no familial relation to the defendant, corroborated this in her court testimony the next day.
However, Nancy Gray testified that Stacey Gray didn’t have a key to the house after the locks were changed when Eldridge was allegedly raped in 2014.
Nancy Gray testified that she learned about Eldridge’s alleged 2014 rape the next morning, when she talked to her daughter at the hospital. Eldridge told her mother that, after the alleged sexual assault, the attacker pulled her to the end of the bed and douched her out, according to Nancy Gray’s testimony.
Nancy Gray testified she kept douches in the house. She answered, “Yes,” when Assistant District Attorney Anthony Pickett asked whether she recalled any missing after the incident. \
Nancy Gray said Eldridge thought a man other than the defendant was responsible for her attack. When Pickett asked how many men would know she kept douches in the house, she responded, “Stacey.”
The Alabama Bureau of Investigation developed a DNA profile from the vaginal swabs and fingernail clippings taken from Eldridge’s body, which matched Stacey Gray, according to Kelly’s opening statements. Stacey Gray’s DNA also matched evidence from the time Eldridge was allegedly sexually assaulted in 2014.
Kelly said Stacey Gray also was caught with Eldridge’s gun, and his vehicle was seen on the bridge where her body was dumped in the creek.
Dillon said she doesn’t disagree with a lot of the evidence Kelly told jurors they would hear. However, Dillon asked jurors to be mindful of a few things when they listen to the evidence.
These include when the investigation happened, when evidence was found, what the police know and when did they know. She also asked jurors to be mindful of the location of the evidence.
Dillon said jurors will hear Stacey Gray was cooperative and consented to have his DNA taken. She told jurors they will hear about evidence collected and tested, as well as evidence collected and not tested.
One thing jurors wouldn’t hear during the trial, Dillon said, was about blood at the residence. She said jurors would find there was DNA from the residence, and they would hear who it belonged to.
Dillon said she wanted jurors to keep in mind the burden of proof and presumption of innocence as they listen to the evidence. She said the state has the burden to prove to the jury each and every element of the crimes charged.
Dillon asked jurors to keep an open mind until they have heard all the evidence and look at the foundation of the case.
This story was originally published December 1, 2025 at 5:36 PM.