Stallions walks after guilty plea

 

 

 

By Christa Jennings

Senior Staff Writer 

After just a little more than five years in the county jail, Joe Danial Stallions pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter Monday morning – and was released the same day.

Stallions was incarcerated at the Coosa County Jail from August 12, 2020, to August 18, 2025. He was initially arrested for two counts of capital murder in the 1999 homicides of his mother and sister, and he was charged for promoting prison contraband in August 2023.

Following those charges and 1,832 days in jail, Stallions entered a plea agreement Monday, August 18, and was released on six months unsupervised probation, closing a 26-year-old cold case.

Stallions, 42 years old at the time of his arrest, was arrested in south Alabama on August 12, 2020, on two counts of capital murder for the homicides of his mother, 38-year-old Bobbie Dale Ingram, and sister, 17-year-old Jodi Angelina Stallions.

The double homicide occurred at their home on U.S. Highway 231 in the small Pentonville community south of Rockford on January 12, 1999. According to reports, both were killed with apparent gunshot wounds to their heads.

Following his arrest, Joe Danial Stallions was indicted by a grand jury in early February 2021, also for two counts of capital murder. On February 18 of that year, he appeared for his arraignment and pleaded not guilty to both counts of capital murder.

Stallions would remain in custody at the Coosa County Jail in Rockford for five years, until Monday’s release. Sheriff Michael Howell explained that the reason Stallions was in jail so long without going to trial was because the defense attorney kept continuing the case.

Finally, on Monday Stallions pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter, a lesser offense and Class B felony, with Circuit Judge David Law taking his plea. He was sentenced to a 20-year sentence to run concurrent and six months unsupervised probation, with the 20 years split to serve five.

In Alabama, a split sentence gives a judge the opportunity to impose a sentence of incarceration in jail or prison for a portion of time, with the remainder of the sentence being suspended and served under probation.

Having already been in jail for five years, that counted as time served for Stallions, and with the rest of his sentence suspended he was released Monday to begin his six months of unsupervised probation.

Defense attorney Greg Varner explained that Stallions made an Alford plea, stating that it was in his client’s best interest. With it being an Alford plea, Stallions did not admit to anything, as an Alford plea means there is no admission of guilt.

“It was too good of a deal to pass up,” Varner said.

Even though he entered a plea agreement for manslaughter, with that type of plea agreement Stallions did not have to admit guilt, and he did not admit guilt.

Evidence included in the case file included an eye witness statement from the night of the double homicides, as well as multiple written statements from inmates who were housed with Stallions. Information provided matched information from that night and from the crime scene all those years ago, according to reports. Based on the case file, there was reportedly “overwhelming evidence and statements” should the case have gone to trial, but that was not to be.

If the case had gone to trial and Stallions was found guilty, he would have potentially been looking at life without parole for the capital murder charges, plus the felony contraband case, which could have carried a 20-year sentence.

Regarding the prison contraband charge, that stemmed from a search resulting in finding an item that reportedly could be used for escape or to cause bodily harm to a corrections officer or deputy. As such, he was charged with first-degree promoting prison contraband on August 22, 2023.

However, with Monday’s plea agreement, the contraband case was dismissed entirely.

Following Monday’s outcome, Sheriff Howell stated, “I am glad we were able to determine who was responsible for this and move the case forward and bring some sort of closure.”

Howell added, “My thoughts and prayers are with the Ingram and Stallions families at this time.”

Regarding remaining cold cases in the county now that the Stallions/Ingram case is considered closed, Howell said there is one missing person cold case and two homicide cold cases remaining for the county. The latter are the 1994 murder of Chanty Shiverdecker, who was found in Coosa County in February 1995, and the 1995 murder of Nicky Machen.

While the case may be considered closed on the books, for some it does not bring a sense of closure or peace knowing justice was served.

Angel Wall, Jodi Stallions’ daughter who was only 8 months old at the time, was the lone survivor in the house and was present when the murders took place.

Wall said that she feels as though she has been in the twilight zone ever since Monday’s plea agreement, with the outcome not feeling like justice.

“I’m not going to call it a plea,” she said. “That was a get-out-of-jail-free card.”

The Sheriff’s Office found out Monday morning that Stallions would be entering a plea agreement, and Wall received a call just 30 minutes before Stallions was to appear before Judge Law, with Sheriff Howell informing her what was happening that day and asking how quickly she could get there. Were it not for Howell’s call, it is likely she would not have known it was happening or been able to appear in court.

She found out soon after that Stallions was being released that same day and would not be serving time in prison.

Wall stated that she does not have any hard feelings against Howell, as she said he was the only one who helped. He was the one who reached out to her shortly after he took office and opened the case back up for review.

Howell was also the only one she felt compassion from on Monday at the courthouse. However, she felt let down by others in the justice system following the outcome.

“There’s people in power that can do what’s right, and someone chose the easy way out,” Wall said.

She repeated, “That wasn’t a plea deal. That was a ‘get out of jail free’ card.”

Additionally, Wall said that she was told that evidence was lost in 1999 which compromised the case. However, when she asked, she was not told what evidence was misplaced or who misplaced it.

“This case did not open back up on old evidence,” she said. “This case opened back up because Joe Stallions’ alibi on that night came forward and said, ‘I lied in fear for my life. I was with him that night.’ Old evidence had nothing to do with why this case opened back up. Old evidence being misplaced is irrelevant to this.”

Stallions was also referred to as a violent offender, having robbed two stores at gunpoint a few years after the murders and being convicted in that case. Stallions’ plea agreement also noted that he has three prior felony convictions.

In talking about what her family has been through and looking back over the years, Wall does not feel that she has closure.

“I cannot accept or wrap my head around this being how the case is closed; I can’t,” she said. “Six months probation – that’s not even time to get comfortable. It’s so wrong. …I went to work, and before lunchtime he was a free man”

Wall said that her mother was “a kid” when she was murdered and that she “did not even get to graduate.” She said her grandmother was a young woman at the time, as well.

She stated, “When I stood in that courtroom, and I saw him pretty much get a slap on the wrist and walk free, I couldn’t help but think if this was a state or court official and this was their relative that was murdered – two people murdered in this way – would lost evidence be a justified reason for them, or would they fight tooth and nail to make sure that justice was served?”

Additionally, knowing that her uncle has now gone free after five years in jail, she finds herself looking over her shoulder and said she fears for her and for her kids’ lives.

She said that Stallions knows she brought the case back up with information provided to the Sheriff’s Office.

Wall said that after five years and with Monday’s court appearance and outcome, she feels a type of anger she has not felt in her entire life.

“I need all the prayers I can get,” she said. “The only thing that gives me peace right now is knowing he’s got to meet his Maker.”