Alabama woman avoids jail after pleading guilty to faked abduction, cites emotional issues
Carlee Russell, the Alabama woman who lied to police about seeing a toddler on a busy interstate, then faking her own kidnapping, has avoided jail and was sentenced to probation after pleading guilty on Thursday.
Appearing in a Jefferson County courtroom, Russell pleaded guilty to the misdemeanors of false reporting to law enforcement and falsely reporting an incident. She’ll be forced to pay $17,974.88 in restitution to the city of Hoover.
“I made a grave mistake while trying to fight through various emotional issues and stress,” Russell said through tears at Thursday’s hearing, according to AL.com.
“I absolutely regret my decision and in hindsight wish I had cried for help in a totally different manner,” she continued. “My prayer is that I will be extended grace and be given the opportunity to redeem who I truly am.”
Alabama prosecutors initially requested jail time for the 26-year-old defendant who called 911 in July to report spotting an unattended child on the side of the road, then further flummoxed law enforcement by disappearing for two days and claiming she’d been kidnapped.
Local and federal agents joined in a wide-ranging search for the supposedly missing nursing student.
However, investigators soon discovered that she’d purchased bus tickets, scoured the internet for information on Amber Alerts, and Googled the 2008 missing-person thriller flick “Taken.”
Russell later admitted she never saw a child walking alongside traffic nor was she abducted.
The Alabama Attorney General’s Office expressed frustration over Thursday’s outcome.
“We are disappointed, but not surprised, that Ms. Russell did not get the requested jail time for her crimes,” Chief Counsel Katherine Robertson said in a statement.
“Current law provides a weak penalty for false reporting and fails to account for situations, like Ms. Russell’s, that result in a significant law enforcement response. Fortunately, the Governor will soon receive our legislation to increase penalties for false reporting when an imminent threat is alleged and will expand the amount of restitution that can be sought.”
If that legislation becomes law, defendants who lie to investigators could be charged as felons and sent to prison.
Russell in October pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor counts of lying to law enforcement and making a false report. But a judge ruled against her and recommended a year in jail.
The plea agreement reached by Russell’s team Thursday will keep their client free if she completes 12 months of supervised probation and community service, ABC reported. Russell will also continue receiving mental health counseling.