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FROM STAFF REPORTS

COLUMBIANA – On Sept. 16, the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office successfully brought Felix Garrett to justice.

In one of the first jury trials in the State of Alabama since the COVID-19 shutdown, a Shelby County jury convicted Felix Garrett of nine counts of first-degree rape and four counts of first-degree sodomy with a child victim.

On Oct. 26, 2020, Presiding Judge William H. Bostick sentenced Garrett to nine consecutive life sentences for the crimes.

“We are hopeful that seeing justice served will help the healing process for our young victim,” said Jill Lee, District Attorney for Shelby County.

Deputies arrested Garrett, 55, on June 16, 2017 as the result of an SCSO and Vincent Police Department investigation, which allegedly uncovered multiple years of sexual abuse.

“It’s a great day when we can help a victim find her voice and have her story validated by a jury,” said Jody Tallie, one of the Assistant District Attorneys who prosecuted this case. “Through the hard work of the folks at the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, in conjunction with Shelby County’s Child Advocacy Center, Owens House, we had the evidence we needed to bring Mr. Garrett to justice. Our victim is a strong young lady who has broken the silence to stand up to her abuser and we proudly stand beside her.”