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

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Will someone enlighten me on the cheezits? I'm feeling left out over here.
I just found it by googling “Carlethia Cheeze its”. It’s interesting.
Hoover PD Facebook page will livestream. I think you can watch it even if you don't have a FB account.


Hoover (AL) Police Department


Carlee Russell Investigation Continues
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Note: Press conference scheduled for 2:30pm cst today. Due to space limitations, this is open to credentialed media only. Also, HPD will live stream on our Facebook page for your convenience.
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The investigation into the Carlee Russell case continues as detectives are working to determine what happened from the time prior to her 911 call Thursday night until she returned home on foot Saturday night. Detectives spoke to Carlee very briefly upon her return home and are waiting for her to be made available to obtain a more detailed statement about the sequence of events during that timeframe. While we are not in a position to reveal all of the information we have gathered at this point, we can talk about some details that we have not previously discussed.
- After leaving The Colonnade, Carlee went to Target on Highway 280 and purchased some snack food type items. These items were not located in the vehicle or with her cell phone and wig at the scene of her disappearance.
- The Hoover Police Department has not located any evidence of a toddler walking down the interstate, nor did we receive any additional calls about a toddler walking down the interstate, despite numerous vehicles passing through that area as depicted by the traffic camera surveillance video.
- Detectives have obtained surveillance video from Carlee’s neighborhood which shows her walking down the sidewalk alone prior to her arrival at her residence. Fire department radio traffic obtained by several media outlets shows that medics were dispatched to her residence on an “unresponsive but breathing” person. That was the term used in the initial dispatch of the Hoover Fire Department to the residence, and the information about her condition was simply a dispatcher relaying information from what a 911 caller told the emergency communicator. When first responders arrived on scene, they found Ms. Russell conscious and speaking and she was transported in that condition. She was later treated and released from a local hospital.
- Numerous evidentiary items are still being evaluated, and those items are key in the process of determining exactly what took place in the approximately 49 hours Carlee was missing, but also what took place prior to her disappearance.
This release contains all of the information the Hoover Police Department is able to provide at this time. We understand that there are numerous rumors and misinformation making the rounds in both social media and traditional media. While we understand the public interest in this incident, we must maintain the integrity of the case, thus we are limited in what information or statements we can release or confirm at this time. The Hoover Police Department will hold a press conference tomorrow, at which time we will be able to release additional information. The press conference will take place at the Frank and Pam Barefield Training Center, located at 850 Municipal Drive Hoover, AL at 2:30 P.M. central time.
What they released was very meaningful. I don’t think there’s any doubt that LE does not believe her story.
 
There was a video from Court TV posted up thread. The guest lady said that Carlee had been caught stealing at her job that day and also had flunked her nursing. (I’m paraphrasing there).
What horrible luck for her to ALSO be abducted for two days.
I’m wondering if she just really needed a break and didn’t think this plan through.
Either way, I hope she gets well and gets her life going in a healthy direction.

Yesterday evening "Carlee" was trending on Twitter, I clicked on it and read some of the very numerous tweets, one person tweeted what the guest on Court TV said. There is no confirmation (at least yet) of that, just what someone said on social media and the Court TV guest repeated.
 
just to note here
why this ( went instantly viral ) while so many cases goes unnoticed ?
its a very catchy headline..sounds like a plot of a movie ( baby ) alone would attract attention
is that why
Well it falls into the “human trafficking” trope that people are hysterical all over the place about. The belief that there are roving bands of strangers trying to traffic women and children off the road or from a mall or IKEA. “Two men with accents were following me!”

Adding in the child used as bait, which is one of the trafficking myths, and it becomes even more interesting.

But the fact that this is a young, beautiful, seemingly responsible woman is crucial as well. That is an element that makes this even more attractive to people.
 
I just found it by googling “Carlethia Cheeze its”. It’s interesting.

What they released was very meaningful. I don’t think there’s any doubt that LE does not believe her story.
Right. It’s apparent that she bought the snacks, and took them with her, knowing she’d need something to eat for the next 48 hours before returning home. That says it all.
 
I just want to throw this out there. In my opinion, someone using something as bait on the side of the freeway is possible however I don’t think it is very probable. If it was stranger danger why would they wait for who knows how long for someone to stop when they could abduct someone from somewhere else faster? If it was someone who knew her, again why wait and hope she stops when they could just follow her and somehow try to get her to stop or abduct her while she was already parked and out of her car at one of the shopping centers? Unless the “abductor” likes theatrics I don’t see this scenario happening but instead something faster/“easier”.
 
This is CRAZY!

Carlee is not a minor. Are the parents stepping to prevent further questioning? Since when is this allowed?
Lots of true crime podcasts have taught me, sometimes people just don’t show up to talk to LE.

if they’re not being accused of/suspects in a crime, this is, as far as I can tell, acceptable behavior.

could she be charged with false reporting if she in fact did falsely report? Maybe… but it doesn’t sound like it has reached there yet.
 
Well it falls into the “human trafficking” trope that people are hysterical all over the place about. The belief that there are roving bands of strangers trying to traffic women and children off the road or from a mall or IKEA. “Two men with accents were following me!”

Adding in the child used as bait, which is one of the trafficking myths, and it becomes even more interesting.

But the fact that this is a young, beautiful, seemingly responsible woman is crucial as well. That is an element that makes this even more attractive to people.
Yes, It is absolute hysteria. Although trafficking does occur it is not in every town as sm would have you believe, IMO.
 
In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, Carlee's mother Talitha Robinson-Russell said her daughter and the family are cooperating with the investigation.

"Please understand our mental state and the anguish we have just experienced and that Carlee is still dealing with and understand that no matter how many demands or false narratives that are produced we will not be bullied into doing anything that will compromise our daughter’s mental well being or the investigation," she wrote.
 
just to note here
why this ( went instantly viral ) while so many cases goes unnoticed ?
its a very catchy headline..sounds like a plot of a movie ( baby ) alone would attract attention
is that why
I think it's because it started as a good Samaritan who stopped to help a small child and then was a victim of an abduction and was endangered. It's a shocking situation and could happen to anyone. I saw the headline when it first happened and it was an attention grabber of a story. Now here we are.
 
If this went down like Carlee said it went down, why are they investigating what led up to her disappearance?
Really late to the "party" and am following the thread, so I won't see if there's already a reply to this... but I'd wager they're probably trying to see if she had any kind of disagreement with anyone that would make her want to disappear for a few days or, in the case she was indeed abducted, if they can identify if she had prior interactions with the person who abducted her or even if they can identify the moment she became a target. This could help them identify the possible abductor and prolly give a hand in understanding why they did what they did.
 
To me, this is extremely telling. If there were an abduction you would be very eager to speak to police, to tell them every detail.

Not if you were scared and speechless. Have you been a victim of a crime? Abducted? threatened with a weapon?
Not to be rude but I was so frightened to talk afterward, I was speechless. I was threatened with a weapon I was convinced he'd return to kill my entire family.
Victims of abductions, robberies, and rape sometimes NEVER talk. Trauma.
 
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I just want to throw this out there. In my opinion, someone using something as bait on the side of the freeway is possible however I don’t think it is very probable. If it was stranger danger why would they wait for who knows how long for someone to stop when they could abduct someone from somewhere else faster? If it was someone who knew her, again why wait and hope she stops when they could just follow her and somehow try to get her to stop or abduct her while she was already parked and out of her car at one of the shopping centers? Unless the “abductor” likes theatrics I don’t see this scenario happening but instead something faster/“easier”.
Good logic, imo. How would the abductor know a young woman is going to be the one to spot the child on the interstate and stop to advocate for the child (?) ... the abductor needs to play the lottery. MOO
 
Good logic, imo. How would the abductor know a young woman is going to be the one to spot the child on the interstate and stop to advocate for the child (?) ... the abductor needs to play the lottery. MOO

That part is really odd. I absolutely agree. What if a toddler wandered away from home close by or someone dropped him off by the side of the road?
 
just to note here
why this ( went instantly viral ) while so many cases goes unnoticed ?
its a very catchy headline..sounds like a plot of a movie ( baby ) alone would attract attention
is that why
MOO it played on the recent social media posts about scary traffickers using children to try to lure unsuspecting young females off to where they can be abducted and subjected to the horrors of forced prostitution.

Stories about "scary men following my teen in a Target and then driving past real slow as they left in a scary white panel van" and "some strange man in the parking lot at Walmart put white powder or something sticky on my door handle, and I knew better than to touch it because police told me this is what those traffickers do now to knock you out and kidnap you" etc abound on social media.

Most are not true (MOO) but only serve to gain much needed attention for the poster and play into our deep seeded fears that bad men want to hurt us.

All JMO MOO and IMO
 
Yes, It is absolute hysteria. Although trafficking does occur it is not in every town as sm would have you believe, IMO.
Yeah. And I’m not saying trafficking isn’t widespread. It just isn’t as the Facebook mommies claim it is. Stranger abduction into trafficking is exceedingly rare. It’s typically either months of grooming or sex workers who voluntarily enter the trade and are then trafficked.
 
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