‘We grieve together’: Enterprise mother charged with capital murder in toddler Genesis Reid’s death

ENTERPRISE, Ala. (WALA) - An Enterprise mother is charged with capital murder and abuse of a corpse in connection with the death of her 2-year-old daughter, Genesis Reid, who had been reported missing since February, police announced Monday.

Enterprise Police Chief Michael Moore said at a press conference that investigators believe Genesis was killed on Christmas Day — more than seven weeks before she was reported missing.

Surveillance video cited as key evidence

Moore said video from a neighbor’s camera shows Adrienne Reid walking toward an apartment complex dumpster with a duffel bag on Christmas night. A second video, recorded two days later, shows Adrienne Reid returning to the same dumpster with toys and other belongings believed to belong to Genesis.

“Detectives have seen camera footage from a neighboring residence showing Adrienne walking toward the apartment complex dumpster with a rolling duffel bag at approximately 11:30pm on Christmas night,” Moore said.

Adrienne Reid had already faced charges for making false statements to officers when she reported Genesis missing from their home on Feb. 16 — more than a month after the alleged murder.

Body not yet recovered; landfill search planned

Authorities said Genesis’ body has not been found. Coffee County Sheriff Scott Byrd said investigators believe her remains may be in the Coffee County landfill, and that multiple agencies will assist in a search using specialized equipment.

“This search is going to be methodical, but we’re not gonna waver at any point looking for her,” Byrd said.

Death penalty to be sought

Coffee County District Attorney James Talbox said Reid will have an initial appearance before a judge on the new felony charges later this week. He said his office does plan to seek the death penalty.

Moore said more than 75 law enforcement officers were directly involved in the investigation, which included nearly 100 leads pursued over thousands of investigative hours.

“Our community has prayed together, supported one another and hoped for a different outcome, today we grieve together,” Moore said.

During the investigation, the Coffee County community held a candlelight vigil in hopes of Genesis’ safe return.