Carlee Russell expected in court for review hearing

BESSEMER, Ala. ( WIAT ) — Carlee Russell, a nursing student who garnered national attention when she orchestrated a kidnapping hoax in Hoover last summer, is expected in court Wednesday morning for a review hearing.

Russell pleaded guilty to filing a false police report and falsely reporting an incident to law enforcement this past March in connection with the case at the Jefferson County Courthouse in Bessemer. Russell did not face jail time for the hoax, but instead received a six-month suspended jail sentence and placed on probation for a year. Additionally, Russell was ordered to pay nearly $18,000 in restitution to the city of Hoover and serve 100 hours of community service.

“Carlee apologized to the community, to Hoover, to the volunteers for her action and I hope that we will accept that and move on and allow her to live her life,” Russell’s attorney Emory Anthony said after Russell pleaded guilty in the case.

Russell disappeared on July 13, 2023 after calling police to report seeing a child walking down I-459. Later that night, her car was found abandoned along the side of the interstate. Two days later, Russell was found after walking back to her family home in Hoover, where she claimed she had been kidnapped. However, during the course of an investigation by the Hoover Police Department, Russell confessed to lying about her abduction.

“It’s a little disappointing because it was such an elaborate hoax. The sentencing was similar to the guy who goes to Home Depot and steals a chainsaw,” Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis said regarding the lack of jail time for Russell.

Following Russell’s faked kidnapping, legislation was approved to make false reporting of a crime a felony if the report alleges imminent danger to a person or the public. State lawmakers supporting the bill said Russell’s misdemeanor charges didn’t go far enough considering the massive search efforts she prompted.

Wednesday’s review hearing is part of her 12 month supervised probation.

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