Dateline NBC: Who was Michael Reese and how did he die?

The quiet town of Morris, Alabama, was shocked after learning about the grisly murder of 40-year-old Michael Reese on February 18, 2015. Michael and his wife, Cindy Henderson Reese, had stepped out for service at the Sardis Baptist Church, which was followed by dinner at Milo's, a local restaurant. Cindy then told Michael that she needed some groceries and left their home.

However, when she returned, she called 911 to report a break-in at her house and when authorities arrived, they found Michael, who had been shot to death. Upon further investigation, the police realized that Michael had been shot execution-style by Cindy and the burglary was staged to mislead authorities. The motive behind the murder was discovered to be a complicated love triangle.

Dateline aired an episode about Michael's death titled Even the Devil Went to Church in October 2020.

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"When a small town Alabama resident is murdered in his home, rumors involving a local pastor begin to swirl as the truth ends up turning the community upside down," the official synopsis of the episode read.

Even the Devil Went to Church is set to be re-aired on Apri 21, 2024 at 10 pm EST.

Who was Michael Reese? Details explored

Michael Earl Reese was born on July 5, 1974, in Morris, Jefferson County, Alabama. He married Cindy Henderson Reese in 2009 after her first husband reportedly took his own life. Michael and Cindy had been married for nearly six years when the former was killed in their home.

The 40-year-old and his wife lived on the 600 block of Banks Street in Morris, which is opposite the police station. The couple were regular members of the Sardis Baptist Church where Cindy worked as the Minister of Music.

However, the investigation into Michael's death revealed details about Cindy having an affair with their church pastor Jeffrey David Brown. According to multiple reports, Brown was quite close to the Reese family and Cindy would often babysit the pastor's two children.

A report by AI.com stated that Cindy and Jeffrey began their affair in 2013 after Brown became the senior pastor of the church.

How was Michael Reese murdered?

The officers from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call made from Michael Reese's home on the night of February 18, 2015. He had been shot in the back of the head and his body was found lying on the kitchen floor. The back door of the house was reportedly left open.

Michael Reese and his wife, Cindy, had been to their church for service and then stopped by Milo's to dine out. Once they got home, Cindy reportedly shot Michael in the head at close range before she headed out to buy groceries.

When Cindy returned home, at around 8 pm local time, she called 911 to report a break-in but didn't mention that her husband's body was also in the house. The coffee table was upturned and the furniture was in a state of disarray around the house. Authorities also saw a Piggly Wiggly bag at the scene which had orange juice and ham inside it.

As they looked further into the case, authorities noticed that there was no sign of forced entry and nothing was missing from the house. This led them to suspect that Michael Reese potentially knew his killer. They also discovered Cindy's affair with their church pastor Jeffrey Brown.

Once the trial began, it took the jury 90 minutes to find Cindy guilty of murder charges, per Al.com. She was sentenced to prison for 40 years while Brown pled guilty and testified against Cindy for a lighter sentence of 20 years.

Catch the Dateline episode chronicling Michael's death will be aired on NBC on Apri 21, 2024 at 10 pm EST.

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