Russell, 26, pleaded not guilty and is appealing to the circuit court.
www.al.com
[…]
The ruling came after Russell pleaded not guilty to charges of false reporting to law enforcement authorities and falsely reporting an incident.
Despite her plea, Municipal Judge Brad Bishop found her guilty based on the recommendation of state prosecutors.
Bishop recommended one year in jail and $17,874 in restitution. He also recommended two fines of $831 each.
[…]
Anthony said Russell’s legal team completely disagrees with jail time for a Class A misdemeanor, especially when it’s Russell’s first offense.
“If you can find where someone was put in jail for that, bring the file to me and I’ll look at it,’’ he said. “Generally, they’re not put in jail.”
“Restitution, we don’t disagree with that, but to lock her up and put her in jail, we disagree,’’ he said.
[…]
Anthony said he doesn’t know if more charges will be filed, but said the defense was invited by the Attorney General’s Office to speak before a grand jury. They declined.
Asked where she was during the 49 hours that she was missing, Anthony said, “I think you’ll have to as the AG’s office.”
“The AG’s office I don’t think it being...compassionate,’' he said. “They know the young lady was not off on a whim. They knew the young lady was not off with some young man. So they know that.”
[…]
