Update” Carlee Russell’s attorney Emory Anthony met with Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis on Tuesday, July 25.
Anthony told local news station WDHN he expects his client to be charged today or tomorrow.
He said Tuesday’s meeting with Derzis was “a great meeting; It was a short meeting. We tried to identify some things about where we go from here. There [are] responsibilities that we need to take care of.”
The meeting came a day after Anthony released a statement, saying Russell admitted faking her own abduction.
When asked how Russell was doing, Anthony said she is doing better, but still “dealing with her issues.”
“I wanna commend the Hoover Police Department and the chief of police for their action and how they handled everything,” Anthony said. “Hopefully we can get to the end game, as they say, of this particular thing.”
Bessemer’s woke district attorney Lynneice O. Washington is expected to announce charges against Russell.
Washington, 55, was the first Black woman elected as DA in the state of Alabama in 2016. She won re-election in November with 53.25 percent of the vote.
According to sources, DA Washington and Russell’s attorney are longtime friends.
DA Washington was accepted to Miles Law School in 1990 — at the recommendation of Emory Anthony who was a Municipal Court Judge at the time.
Anthony ran an unsuccessful campaign for mayor of Birmingham in 2009.
Originally published on: July 26, 2023 at 11:12 AM:
Carlee Russell’s ex-boyfriend expressed his disgust after she admitted faking her abduction.
The former nursing student called 911 to report seeing a toddler walking alongside Highway 459 in Hoover, Alabama on July 13. When police arrived, Russell and the child were gone.
Her disappearance sparked a massive search by federal and local law enforcement agencies. Russell returned home 2 days later as if nothing happened.
On Monday, Russell’s attorney Emory Anthony said in a statement read by Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis:
“There was no kidnapping … my client did not see a baby. My client did not leave the Hoover area. My client apologizes for her actions to this community … Carlee asks for your forgiveness and prayers.”
Now Russell’s ex-boyfriend, Thomar Latrell Simmons, says he is “blindsided” and “disgusted” by Russell’s selfish actions.
“Carlee’s actions created hurt, confusion, and dishonesty,” Simmons wrote on Instagram on Monday night. “I was made aware of the false narrative after coming to the defense of my ex Carlee Russell.”
Simmons said he and his family helped search for Russell and his “family’s nature was to react in love, and genuine concern” for her.
He added that they are “disgusted from the outcome of this entire situation” and that he was “blindsided with Carlee’s actions.”
Simmons noted that although the investigation into her elaborate hoax remains ongoing, his family has gained “closure” by Russell’s confession.
“Thank you to all my family, friends, and the nation for support through this,” he wrote. “The severity in this matter has not been overlooked, and I deeply respect the genuine support shared during this situation.”
Sources say Russell planned the elaborate hoax to gain Simmons’s attention after he allegedly dumped her for a stripper.
Russell reportedly sent Simmons a text message from her burner phone while allegedly hiding out at a Birmingham Red Roof Inn.
The text message read: “I hope you enjoy Carlee’s body scattered across the road.”
The burner phone’s IP address was reportedly the same IP address that ordered a fingernail kit, snacks, and slim Jims from a store via Instacart, according to sources.
Russell’s life is in shambles. The 26-year-old was recently fired from her job at a spa, and she was reportedly kicked out of nursing school.
She now faces criminal charges and a possible six figure bill for wasting Hoover police manpower and community resources.
Police said it is up to Bessemer’s woke district attorney Lynneice O. Washington to bring charges.
According to sources, Washington and Russell’s attorney are good friends — which likely means Russell will walk with a slap on the wrist.
However, the FBI and Secret Service are involved in the investigation. The Secret Service investigates financial crimes. So Russell may still face charges on the federal level.
