In a bizarre turn of events that unfolded on a Sunday morning in Perdido, Alabama, a man’s life was cut short, and the initial report of the death came from the alleged perpetrator himself. On January 16, 2022, 24-year-old Cody Taylor was found shot and killed, leaving a community to grapple with the sudden and violent loss. The male victim's death was brought to the attention of law enforcement in an unconventional manner, setting the stage for a strange and tragic story.
The incident
came to light around 10:30 a.m. when a man and a woman walked into the docket room at the Baldwin County Corrections Center. They informed the employees that a person had been killed in the unincorporated community of Perdido. This unexpected confession prompted the employees to summon a deputy, and the pair were held for questioning while officers were dispatched to the scene. Deputies arrived at a residence in the 53000 block of Cemetery Road, where they discovered the body of Cody Taylor. He had sustained a fatal gunshot wound.
The man who had accompanied the woman to the corrections center to report the death was soon identified as the primary suspect. Ethan Branum, a 23-year-old from Bay Minette, was arrested and subsequently charged with murder. In addition to the murder charge, Branum also faced charges of unlawful imprisonment, first-degree burglary, and menacing. The woman who was with him at the time of the report was considered a witness and was not charged in connection with the crime.
Following his arrest, Ethan Branum was booked into the Baldwin County Sheriff's Corrections Center. A bond was set at $259,000. The investigation into the circumstances surrounding Cody Taylor's death continued after the arrest, as authorities worked to piece together the events that led to the fatal shooting. The case stands as a grim reminder of a life lost, with the initial alert to the crime coming from the very person accused of committing it.
