Courtney Vivian Staggs, mother of five, was living on Piedmont Street in Florence when she went missing in 2020. Also known as Courtney Barrett, the 35 year-old sometimes called herself "Hot Alabama Girl" online.
From the Florence Police Department on August 18, 2020: Courtney Staggs was last seen Monday (8/10/2020) in the Florence, AL area. Courtney is 5'05" with green eyes and brown hair. She was last seen wearing a black shirt and black pants with sandals.
The Florence woman's last sighting was near the 600 block of East Irvine Avenue where she had been visiting a client who stated she appeared normal when she left. Due to certain aspects of her last known hours, she was listed as endangered.
There was no further news of Courtney until October when her EBT card was found in Lil Caesar's Pizza in Florence Plaza. Despite the find, no CCTV cameras picked up either Courtney or anyone who could possibly have been using the card.
Then, in November, hunters found the remains of a female body in a wooded area off Jarmon Lane. After viewing items found with the body, family members believed the deceased was Courtney, but needed to wait for DNA confirmation. A daughter provided her DNA for testing, and the wait began.
The body was initially sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences which failed to make a positive identification. From there, the body traveled to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia.
On May 20, 2024, the Colbert County Sheriff's Office received word that the remains definitely belonged to Courtney, and a death certificate was issued on May 22nd. Her family held a memorial service on May 31st, but for Colbert Sheriff Eric Balentine, the work was just beginning.
Balentine has indicated that he expects the case to go swiftly at this point. He has persons of interest, as well as statements linking them to Staggs' last hours. While Courtney's family awaits an arrest, one relative expressed thanks for a major hurdle in the case: Courtney Vivian Staggs is now buried beside her mother.
.jpeg)
