Jessica Maria Motes, 36, is a Georgia woman facing the death penalty in the Jessica Motes case, in which four-year-old Autumn Fox was found dead in the trunk of Motes’ car outside a Sam’s Club in Oakwood in October 2025. Motes has been indicted on malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, first-degree cruelty to children, and concealing a death. She rejected a plea deal for life without parole, pleaded not guilty, and prosecutors in the Northeastern Judicial Circuit formally filed notice to seek capital punishment in March 2026.
What Happened at the Sam’s Club
On Sunday, October 26, 2025, Motes drove to a Sam’s Club on Mundy Mill Road in Oakwood and called her father. According to Hall County Sheriff’s Office arrest warrants, she told him, “I think she is dead,” and said she had hurt the child.1WSB-TV. Woman Accused of Driving to Sam’s Club With 4-Year-Old’s Body in Trunk May Face Death Penalty Her father alerted other family members and law enforcement. When Hall County deputies arrived, they found Autumn Fox’s body in the trunk of Motes’ Nissan sedan.2Court TV. Autopsy Report Delayed for 4-Year-Old Found in Trunk of Car at Sam’s Club
Motes was initially booked into the Hall County Jail on a charge of concealing a death. On November 12, 2025, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced the additional charges of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, and first-degree cruelty to children.3Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Hall County Woman Arrested for Murder
How Autumn Fox Came to Be in Motes’ Care
The exact relationship between Motes and Autumn has never been officially explained. Autumn’s biological parents, Rachel Aman and Jessie Dillion Fox, were arrested on November 6, 2024, on methamphetamine possession and probation violation charges, and both were incarcerated at the Hall County Jail at the time of Autumn’s death nearly a year later.4Now Georgia. Documents and Interviews Detail Final Days of 4-Year-Old Autumn Fox
Reports identify Darrell “Travis” Terry, Motes’ fiancé, as Autumn’s legal guardian, though journalists could not locate family court records confirming a formal guardianship. Jessica’s father, Tim Motes, alleged that Terry took custody of Autumn and her older brother from the biological parents to keep the Department of Family and Children Services out of their criminal cases, telling reporters, “Terry picked up two kids from a traffic stop to avoid DFACS.” A heavily redacted DFCS report indicated Terry told investigators he had delegated all physical care of Autumn to Jessica Motes. Tim Motes said he repeatedly warned DFCS that the children were unsafe in that household. Autumn’s older brother was reportedly placed with Terry’s sister.4Now Georgia. Documents and Interviews Detail Final Days of 4-Year-Old Autumn Fox
How Autumn Died
According to arrest warrants and the grand jury indictment, Autumn died from blunt force trauma and exposure to a combination of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and xylazine. The indictment alleges Motes killed the child “by subjecting her to blunt force trauma by means unknown to the grand jury and exposing her to fentanyl, methamphetamine and xylazine.”5Fox 5 Atlanta. Prosecutors Seek Death Penalty for Hall County Woman Accused of Killing Child Warrants also describe a broken right arm and multiple “pattern injuries” on Autumn’s body before her death.
A final autopsy report from the GBI remained incomplete as of May 2026. Prosecutors told the court the process was “lengthy” because it involved multiple medical examiners and additional testing, including portions of remains set in formalin for further evaluation. The initial indictment relied on what prosecutors called an “informal opinion” about the cause of death.2Court TV. Autopsy Report Delayed for 4-Year-Old Found in Trunk of Car at Sam’s Club
The Charges and the Death Penalty Decision
The Hall County grand jury indictment includes malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, first-degree cruelty to children, and concealing the death of another.
The Hall County District Attorney’s Office offered Motes a plea deal of life imprisonment without parole. She rejected it and entered a not guilty plea. On March 2, 2026, District Attorney Lee Darragh’s office formally notified the Hall County Superior Court of its intent to seek the death penalty.6Access North Georgia. Prosecutors to Seek Death Penalty for Cleveland Woman in Child Death Case In a court filing, Darragh wrote that the murder “was outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible, or inhuman in that it involved torture, depravity of mind, or an aggravated battery to the victim.”1WSB-TV. Woman Accused of Driving to Sam’s Club With 4-Year-Old’s Body in Trunk May Face Death Penalty Judge Lindsay H. Burton signed an order on March 4, 2026, noting the rejected plea and Motes’ not guilty plea, and indicating a new judge would likely be assigned.
Where the Case Stands
Motes made her first appearance in Hall County court on May 1, 2026. Her defense had asked to delay proceedings until the GBI autopsy was finished, calling the report “critical” to strategy. Judge Burton denied the request, stating the hearing could not legally be pushed any further. The arraignment did not proceed that day and was rescheduled for July 8, 2026.7WALB. Woman Accused in Death of 4-Year-Old Found in Car Trunk Due in Hall County Court
Even with the autopsy still pending, the court laid out an aggressive schedule for a capital case:
- Arraignment on July 8, 2026
- Jury challenges and pretrial motions in August and September 2026
- Potential evidentiary hearings in October 2026
Legal observers described the prosecution’s pace as “unusually fast” for a death penalty case. The defense has said it may need more time once the final autopsy is produced, since that report will shape what motions it files.8Fox 5 Atlanta. Jessica Motes Trial: Judge Sets Timeline in Child Murder Case
After Motes was declared indigent, the court appointed counsel from the Georgia Capital Defender’s Office. Senior trial attorney Melinda I. Ryals is first chair, and Mark W. Alexander, the Circuit Public Defender for the Northeastern Judicial Circuit, is second chair. Both filed documentation confirming they meet Georgia’s Unified Appeal Procedure experience requirements for death penalty cases. Motes’ previous retained attorney, G. Hammond Law III, remains on the case in an advisory role.9The Georgia Gazette. Jessica Motes Motes has told the court she has no objections to her current attorneys and has requested funding for expert witnesses. She remains held without bail at the Hall County Jail.