Found Alive AL - Carlethia “Carlee” Russell, 25, 911 call reported toddler walking on side of interstate, car found, she & toddler gone, Birmingham, 13 Jul ‘23 #2

[txsleuth70]

Would being hysterical count as non-responsive?

Being hysterical would need its own description and is not related to non-responsive in my medical experience.

 

[MistyWaters]

So Carlee is sticking to her story but what if it conflicts with evidence such as traffic cam footage? No public release of a description of the abductor, no urgency to even identify a culprit suggests to me that could be the current situation. Where does that leave LE if they have good reason to doubt her story? This now seems a situation that goes well beyond the public seeking the truth. JMO

Exclusive: Parents of Carlee Russell open up about daughter’s reappearance in Alabama

On July 18, Russell's parents shared a written statement during an exclusive interview with NBC News.

www.today.com

"Carlee has given detectives her statement so that they can continue to pursue her abductor," Talitha Russell read from the statement.

When asked if she believes her daughter's abductor is still out there, she responded: "Absolutely."

NBC News has reached out to the Hoover Police Department to ask if investigators are searching for an individual involved in the case.

Hoover Police Chief Nicholas C. Derzis has only said investigators are following up on all the information Carlee Russell provided.….”

 

[JerseyWasHome2]

It pinged to the neighborhood side of the trees. To add, mom likely pinged from Family Locator or Life 360 - those apps are not always 100% accurate. For example, we've pinged our high school kid and it looked like he was across the street at a hair salon school when he was really at a pizza joint two doors down.

So glad you pointed out the "accuracy" because it's very important to keep in mind. My Google app on my phone shows me having visited locations I've never been to, but that were within a few hundred feet of ones I was indeed at, at the time, as you noted in your example.

 

[JerseyWasHome2]

I watched the parents’ interview this morning and the mom said that they didn’t immediately talk to Carlee when she came in because of her condition. She wasn’t in a good state. So I am assuming that that is where the ”unresponsive but breathing“ came from. Perhaps she was breathing but just wouldn’t talk OR she was screaming and freaking out?

They said they had to step back. That’s very telling IMO.

Her mother also said in response to the question of what she did when she first saw her - "we had to stand back and let medical professionals work with her" which to me implies that police or EMTs arrived at her parents' home within a minute or so of her arrival. Anyone else get the same impression? How did they get there so quickly?

 

[SerialGal]

I skipped toward the end and apparently earlier in the show Gray checked a camera at another mile marker and it glitched at the exact same time as Carlee's

This is a very weird coincidence. Is it possible that the company with this video footage experienced a server-wide glitch that may explain why both videos had same issue? I’m tech-savvy, but this would be out of my league.

 

[Ladyotm]

I'm sharing this as a "Happened to a friend of mine" story. She was "kidnapped" by a stalker when she left work, he took her to his house and kept her tied up, then released her several days later, unharmed. I don't think he knew what he wanted to do with her, just wanted her. LE said nothing for weeks. The guy had skedaddled and my friend was terrified he would come and get her again. There was likely not any danger to anyone else as he seemed obsessed with her. The plan was to get him to calm down and think he was "safe" until they could track him(this was back in the early 80s, so no cameras and such). And that is exactly what happened, they tracked him with an atm withdrawal. Just some guy she knew from school, obsessed, mental health issues. Leading up he had left roses on her car, stuffed animals, other things like that.

Not saying that happened here, just that weird things do happen.

Thank you for sharing. Not all kidnappers are killers. Thank goodness!

 

[Quill]

Why wouldn't LE notify them. It's what the FBI does?
"The FBI has jurisdiction to immediately investigate any reported mysterious disappearance or kidnapping involving a child. Do not wait to report a missing child.
Call your local FBI field office or the closest international office. You can also contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.
The FBI link doesn't say to call your local LE so they can then call the FBI.

If a child is missing and possibly kidnapped, but no interstate transportation is known, will the FBI begin an investigation?

Yes. The FBI will initiate a kidnapping investigation involving a missing child “of tender years,” even though there is no known interstate aspect. “Tender years” is generally defined as a child 12 years or younger. The FBI will monitor other kidnapping situations when there is no evidence of interstate travel, and it offers assistance from various entities including the FBI Laboratory.

Frequently Asked Questions | Federal Bureau of Investigation

Answers to commonly asked questions pertaining to the FBI. What is the FBI? What is the mission of the FBI? What are the primary functions of the FBI?

www.fbi.gov

I would ask this question though: does a random wandering toddler fall into the "kidnapping" category? I would think as often as this happens these days that it would not, at least and until they have more substantiated. JMO

 

[mfmfan77]

I'll say this without trying to get my post deleted...

If Carlee had been found wandering in the nearby trees... along the highway... in the neighborhood on the other side of the trees... I'd be inclined to think some kind of "mental issue" (I'm not a Dr. so that's the term I'm using on this true crime board) would be a reasonable possibility.

However... we have reason to believe that the police were searching in those areas very quickly that night. One might even reasonably believe they were doing so within 10 minutes of the first police officer arriving at her car.

You may disagree, but I'm of the opinion that Carlee's physical capabilities would not have made her very likely to elude the search I believe happened in the hours after her 911 call AND especially so, if she were having a "mental issue." She's not a marathon runner. I don't see her hopping fences. I don't think she hid under a boat for 2 days, etc..

I'm left with the conclusion that 1 of 2 things happened. 1) she was in one of the nearby homes for some period of time or 2) she was transported out of the area in some vehicle.

Some may believe abductor(s) were involved in either of those options. Some might feel something else happened.

I think that's all OK.

I think this is well thought out and really plausible. It makes sense that she was either in a house nearby or a car, either willingly or unwillingly. It makes me think of those cases where the abductor lets the victim go but tells them to go straight home and not call the cops. I'm not saying that's the case here, but that's what it reminds me of. If this is possibly the case, you'd hope LE would make a statement soon.

 

[Quill]

Could she have passed out once she was safe at home? Maybe she was acting on an adrenaline rush before she got safely inside the home.
(happened to me once, passed out once the crisis was over)

Yes. Unresponsive in this case is a medical term meaning that she is either passed out or catatonic but still breathing (aka.. not in a cardiac arrest) JMO

 

[nikki80]

'

Her mother also said in response to the question of what she did when she first saw her - "we had to stand back and let medical professionals work with her" which to me implies that police or EMTs arrived at her parents' home within a minute or so of her arrival. Anyone else get the same impression? How did they get there so quickly?

Yep. I got the same from that statement, or when she came in, she didn’t say anything to them or she was still freaking out so much that they just all sat there waiting for the EMT’s to arrive.

Just trying to think how I would react if that were my daughter.

 

[Quill]

I think this is well thought out and really plausible. It makes sense that she was either in a house nearby or a car, either willingly or unwillingly. It makes me think of those cases where the abductor lets the victim go but tells them to go straight home and not call the cops. I'm not saying that's the case here, but that's what it reminds me of. If this is possibly the case, you'd hope LE would make a statement soon.

And in at least one of those cases I know of where the kidnapper did let his victim go, he did tell her he would kill her if she told anything about him. She did not and would not talk for some time and the public as well as some officials were convinced she was lying. They put that girl through a terrible ordeal after she had been savagely and brutally abused. It is why I no longer immediately jump to conclusions until more facts are in.

 

[Ontario Mom]

Lots to catch up on this morning, whew.

While I'm glad she's home safe, glad for her and her parents and all who love her, and while trying hard to be victim friendly as is the TOS here, the alleged kidnapping rings completely untrue to me.

jmo

 

[iluvmua]

Lots to catch up on this morning, whew.

While I'm glad she's home safe, glad for her and her parents and all who love her, and while trying hard to be victim friendly as is the TOS here, the alleged kidnapping rings completely untrue to me.

jmo

It's giving me Sherri Pappini vibes

 

[Vegoia]

No warning from police to neighboring cul de sac through the side of the hiway woods tenants that they should be aware of any strangers in the nabe? nothing? In my city they would use their SM to state this, a threat wouldnt be kept silent. For PD to issue no danger in the area is saying a lot about this case, even in podunk.

 

[mfmfan77]

And in at least one of those cases I know of where the kidnapper did let his victim go, he did tell her he would kill her if she told anything about him. She did not and would not talk for some time and the public as well as some officials were convinced she was lying. They put that girl through a terrible ordeal after she had been savagely and brutally abused. It is why I no longer immediately jump to conclusions until more facts are in.

I feel the same. I'd be surprised if her parents went on national television to double down on the abduction claims unless they have reason to believe they're accurate. If they doubted her, you'd think they would just quietly wait for the storm to pass.

 

[thefragile7393]

Being hysterical would need its own description and is not related to non-responsive in my medical experience.

Correct from a non verified psych perspective

 

[Ontario Mom]

It's giving me Sherri Pappini vibes

I understand why, but that lying fraud planned out her fake kidnapping, and I'm not seeing this here.
Maybe more of an "in the moment" sort of thing that ended up getting a huge amount of attention, very fast.

jmo

 

[Quill]

Abby Hernandez's kidnapping wasn't faked.

https://www.cnn.com/2016/05/27/us/kibby-guilty-plea-new-hampshire/index.html

Her kidnapper, Nathaniel Kibby, is still in prison for this crime. I just double checked.

Department of Corrections, New Hampshire Department of Corrections Inmate Locator

Not only was her kidnapping not faked, but she refused to talk to police in the beginning because she was traumatized and terrified he would come back as he told her he would. She was then brutalized again by investigators who believed she was lying. It should be websleuths abduction 101 required reading.

 

[MistyWaters]

I would ask this question though: does a random wandering toddler fall into the "kidnapping" category? I would think as often as this happens these days that it would not, at least and until they have more substantiated. JMO

I agree, I don’t think the FBI are involved because it’s suspected the roadside child was kidnapped, considering no child was even identified.

In other cases I’ve followed the FBI have stepped in as a support role, often offering IT expertise along with software. It wouldn’t surprise me if that’s the case here, correlating cellphone data and traffic cam, other 3rd party CCTV and dashcam, etc.

 

[thebedbug]

@whitelilac - I also wanted to expand on what you wrote above.

I'm curious if anyone else noticed this in Gray Hughes's video. When Carlee's car comes into view in the lower right around 9:34:44, pay attention at the 9:34:51 mark.

A car appears right next to hers in the right lane. (She is, of course, in the shoulder, so I mean the actual driving right lane.) When you compare its speed with other car speeds, it seems like it's moving along at a speed somewhere between her speed and the other drivers. One car in the middle lane even passes it.

I guess it's possible that it was just someone slowing down because they saw her start to move from her parked position, but I also wonder if it's the mystery gray car we keep hearing about. Was it parked next to her and then moved on as she did?

At 9:35:07, it even seems to almost veer into the shoulder itself, in the area where her car parks a second time.

I just think it's worth noting... I think the "mystery gray car" narrative only lives on... here. Was it her cousin that made the claim about a "trucker" on Saturday?

Have the police ever mentioned this?