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

[mewmew]

I will hold my tongue a bit longer until the press conference, but I must say if it does turn out this was all fabricated, it is very frustrating to me. It’s something I will never understand. I could see thinking this was a good “plan” in high school as a way to escape my troubles, but even then it would be an idea only - not something I could go through with. The days spent searching, the emotional and mental distress for your loved ones, and what is the end goal? You’d have to know the police are going to figure it out….right? All this is IF it’s fabricated, of course. Personally I do believe she should be charged if it all ends up being a story. I’m very glad she’s safe, but this trend can’t continue. There needs to be consequences.

All JMO.

 

[NeverPersonal]

I will hold my tongue a bit longer until the press conference, but I must say if it does turn out this was all fabricated, it is very frustrating to me. It’s something I will never understand. I could see thinking this was a good “plan” in high school as a way to escape my troubles, but even then it would be an idea only - not something I could go through with. The days spent searching, the emotional and mental distress for your loved ones, and what is the end goal? You’d have to know the police are going to figure it out….right? All this is IF it’s fabricated, of course. Personally I do believe she should be charged if it all ends up being a story. I’m very glad she’s safe, but this trend can’t continue. There needs to be consequences.

All JMO.

Agreed. If this ends up being a hoax, she is 25 and will need to face the consequences. If in an hour police confirm everyone's suspicions and they *don't* charge her with wasting city resources & making a false report, I think the city (and country) won't be quiet about it until the police do decide to do something.

The way police have been talking about it publicly has been fascinating to me. There's a tone there that they absolutely don't believe her narrative, they share some things they have learned - all of which do not line up with the story as Carlee and her loved ones have told it - and yet, there's also an undercurrent of gentleness there. I really think they tried to give her the benefit of the doubt, and when that ran out, they tried to provide time to come forward and come clean as well as understanding toward her as a person. Seems her family is not taking LE up on that, and instead continuing to push a narrative of "hopefully" police are looking for her (nameless, ageless, faceless, raceless) alleged abductor.

As another poster said a few pages back, the writing is on the wall.

IMO.

 

[Snail-Overlord]

Disclaimer because this is complete speculation and there is no evidence to suggest this happened, but I haven’t seen it mentioned so I wanted to point out another reason that someone might stage a disappearance and then reappear: a planned suicide that they had second thoughts about.

Not saying that’s what happened here, but wanted to mention it because I hadn’t seen it mentioned. There have been a few cases where someone who committed suicide did stage a disappearance or mislead people as to their whereabouts.

JMO. I am eager for the press conference.

 

[Synergizer Bunny]

The poster didn’t say that child trafficking is a myth. Just that trafficking does not happen like social media likes to imply

In this current economic climate, it’s not surprising that more young people are not moving out on their own. Inflation is rampant, rent prices are soaring, and jobs are not paying enough for someone to be able to necessarily live on their own, depending on location.

Nursing school is full-time. It is difficult to work and go to nursing school at the same time. At the age of 41. I moved back into my parents home with my two children, because there was no way I could work full-time and go to nursing school full-time. I did pay rent, and helped them out because I worked part time. Without their help, I could never have gone to school.

Her living at home has no bearing on this, especially in this economic climate, and with what she was doing for school

I don't know if Carlee was going to school for nursing full-time, part-time or not at all. I lived in the area and do know that Jeff State is a community college. She could have been taking one course, for all I know. Hopefully, the news conference will clear it up (but I doubt it).

For my own situation, I worked, went to school full-time, was a single parent, was responsible for a home, let my sister and her child live with me (rent free). So, I do understand the stress. It was hard. I wonder how I did it. Same thing for my MBA, I worked full-time while going to school full-time with the same responsibilities. It wasn't easy.

People do what they have to do. You were blessed with parents who were willing to help you. It seems that Carlee has those same blessings in her life. I somehow think that CR is a troubled young lady who needs help. I just hope, if this is the case, her parents will work on getting it for her.

JMO.

 

[SpicyFruit]

I will hold my tongue a bit longer until the press conference, but I must say if it does turn out this was all fabricated, it is very frustrating to me. It’s something I will never understand. I could see thinking this was a good “plan” in high school as a way to escape my troubles, but even then it would be an idea only - not something I could go through with. The days spent searching, the emotional and mental distress for your loved ones, and what is the end goal? You’d have to know the police are going to figure it out….right? All this is IF it’s fabricated, of course. Personally I do believe she should be charged if it all ends up being a story. I’m very glad she’s safe, but this trend can’t continue. There needs to be consequences.

All JMO.

Yes I will be annoyed as well. So many families push to have their missing loved ones cases taken seriously and this one did and if it was faked, I hope there is consequences.

 

[UnapologeticallyAspie]

It was not proven that Carlee never called from the Red Roof Inn. Her parents who seem a taaad bit biased here (lol) have said it was a hoax. That's it.

Her parents said it was a hoax??

 

[Synergizer Bunny]

Yes. That’s a misinterpretation. IMO, trafficking doesn’t follow the arc presented here (child used as bait, stranger abducting someone off the road to put into trafficking, etc. That last one is exceedingly rare. That first one hasn’t happened to my knowledge).

Human trafficking usually involves developing world movement of people for purposes of servitude of one kind or another, sometimes to developed nations.

In the case of sex trafficking in the US, it tends to involve one or more of the following factors:

1. Sex workers who “voluntarily” engage in the business.

2. At risk youth who typically are at least a couple of the following:

• LGBTQ
• Mentally ill
• Suffering addiction issues
• Abused/neglected
• Kicked out or runaway
• Adolescents/teens
• People of color or immigrants
• Impoverished

3. At risk youth groomed via the internet or by people they know. Usually it’s over a long time period.

Traffickers know who to pick. They want compliant, defeated, marginalized victims. Not educated, stable adults with tons of family/community support or beloved, extremely well-cared for little children snatched from a mall. They need people who are easy to control and that the whole world isn’t looking for.

Those tropes play on deep-seated fears that parents and women can have, as well as “white slavery” myths (like in the movie “Taken”) that feed on fears of the “other” and resistance to women’s independence. They go far back to the late 1800’s/early 1900’s.

I never considered, even if an abduction/kidnapping were legitimate, that Carlee was taken to be "trafficked."

JMO.

 

[bestill]

I hope LE will explain the video jump on the highway footage. I that that is a crucial time for the video to skip. JMO

 

[Sarahlou]

Her parents said it was a hoax??

The phone call from the Inn, not her disappearance.

 

[thefragile7393]

Her parents said it was a hoax??

Her parents said the call was a hoax yes.

 

[lonetraveler]

I've not read every single post but what happened to her picking up two dinners? Now we're hearing about buying snacks at Targets. Did she actually pick up dinner for her mother or did she just buy snacks at Target?

 

[Quill]

Of course there are fringe and outlier cases of literally any category of crime. However, trafficking is usually a very organized crime syndicate. Again, some of us speaking on this have been trained in the topic and aren't just pulling magical stories out of our butts, so to speak. It is frustrating because I have worked with sex trafficking victims who are in recovery and I can tell you that they really despise the false narrative surrounding trafficking. It's almost always a romance scam, grooming, promising a better life, "nobody understands you like I do", "do this for us", etc. Think Andrew Tate.

I greatly respect what you are doing and can understand that frustration. I would think that the Dallas case linked upthread was quite organized from the sound of it and it doesn't fit into what we see being projected as the criteria. I think we have to be extremely careful not to jump to disregard potential cases based on the statistics we might see. My husband is an expert in statistical analysis and he shakes his head at how statistics in general are manipulated and used to further agendas. I'm not saying you are guilty of this. What I am saying is that we are in danger of letting victims slip through the cracks because we have been led to believe they are runaways or even victims of a serial killer when in fact, they may be alive held in captivity. What a tragedy to have no one come for you because they believe you left on your own. Again, thank you for the work you are doing.

 

[Allabouttrial]

WFLA chatting live now before presser.

 

[lonetraveler]

JMO but I think an apology is soon coming.

 

[CamilleBSP]

It definitely is possible, but that would be interesting due to the 3 tweets she fired off before her disappearance (her twitter acct has been linked in each thread about her). One was about loving her job.

Her tweet saying she loves her job could be an attempt at damage control on her part, or she was saying that because they caught her and she wasn't fired... who knows?

 

[gitana1]

It does happen. Watch the movie, "Sound of Freedom," out in movie theaters now.

We live in Texas, and I was shocked to read about the teenager abducted from the Mavericks' game at a crowded stadium. The parents are the ones who found their daughter, not the police!! So, if it can happen at a crowded stadium, I'd say that it can happen anywhere. Parents speak out after their 15-year-old disappeared from a Mavericks game with sex traffickers

JMO.

That kind of scenario is rare. I only know of one other where a couple girls were kidnapped off the street and trafficked.

Interestingly, in the case you cited, one of the traffickers supposedly just motioned to her to come to him, as she sat with her parents in the stadium, and she just jumped up, lied to her parents that she had to go to the bathroom, and willingly walked off with these two men.

My suspicion is that she had been groomed and lured for some time and intended to meet them while there. Because why would a teen girl just immediately jump up and lie to her parents to go off with a stranger after being beckoned by him? It’s weird.

The bottom line is there is a social media hysteria about roving bands of traffickers following people or children in malls and parking lots, using crazy lures to kidnap women and children so they can sell them into the sex trade, and it’s nonsense.

There are daily reports of women and children who are abducted or attacked by strangers, in this country, but not in order to put them into a shadowy sex trafficking network. The level of hysteria about such a thing happening far outweighs the reality, IMO.

But smart people know how to play on those fears in order to get attention or get away with something, etc.

 

[DianaElaine]

The hotel phone call was a hoax?

Here it is:

"There is one terrible and heartless hoax we want to address out of several. I received a text at some point from someone claiming to be Carlee and that she was at the Red Roof Inn. However, when my family went there and knocked on doors and looked for her and there was no indication Carlee was there, nor that she had ever been there. Any further questions or comments about the case will need to be directed to Hoover Police or the ABI," the statement concludes.

 

[DianaElaine]

Press Conference will not be streamed live.

Then what’s this?

Carlee Russell press conference: Police give update on missing Alabama woman

The Hoover Police Department gave an update on Carlee Russell, an Alabama woman who returned home after reported missing, at a press conference.

www.usatoday.com

 

[LaborDayRN]

I don't know if Carlee was going to school for nursing full-time, part-time or not at all. I lived in the area and do know that Jeff State is a community college. She could have been taking one course, for all I know. Hopefully, the news conference will clear it up (but I doubt it).

For my own situation, I worked, went to school full-time, was a single parent, was responsible for a home, let my sister and her child live with me (rent free). So, I do understand the stress. It was hard. I wonder how I did it. Same thing for my MBA, I worked full-time while going to school full-time with the same responsibilities. It wasn't easy.

People do what they have to do. You were blessed with parents who were willing to help you. It seems that Carlee has those same blessings in her life. I somehow think that CR is a troubled young lady who needs help. I just hope, if this is the case, her parents will work on getting it for her.

JMO.

Does anyone know what type of "nursing" she was studying? She could have been in an RN program, an LVN program or a nursing aid program. All would include varying levels of stress.

 

[arielilane]

Press conference begins in about 15 minutes. Another option linked below to watch live stream.

Watch live: Carlee Russell disappearance update​

An Alabama woman vanished after calling 911 to report a child walking along an interstate last week, only to reappear two days later, but police still haven't said what exactly happened to her during that time. Police in Hoover, Alabama, the city of over 90,000 residents just outside of Birmingham where Carlethia “Carlee” Russell disappeared, released new details about their investigation into her whereabouts Tuesday night. Authorities are scheduled to give additional updates in a news conference Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. local time. In a press release late Tuesday, police said Russell was seen on surveillance footage walking alone down the sidewalk in her neighborhood the night she came back home. Police said they spoke to Russell "very briefly" after her return, "and are waiting for her to be made available to obtain a more detailed statement about the sequence of events during that timeframe."