Carlee Russell: What we know today about woman who vanished on I-459 in Hoover A 25-year-old woman vanished off the side of Interstate 459 in Hoover Thursday night after telling a 911 dispatcher and her family she saw a child wandering alone. As of this morning, the search for Carlethia Nichole “Carlee” Russell continues. Here’s what we know about the effort to bring her home safely: Who is Carlee Russell? Russell works part time at The Woodhouse Day Spa at the Summit and attends Jeff State where she is studying to become a registered nurse. She has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from AUM. Jefferson State said Friday it was “extremely concerned” for Russell’s safety. The day of her disappearance, Russell was in Harpersville, where she left police officers there with an impression of a “smart, courteous” woman, the town’s police department said. “We were honored to spend time with this smart, courteous and honoring young woman yesterday,” the department said on social media. Russell is a Black female, 5-feet, 4-inches tall and weighs between 150 and 160 pounds. She was last seen wearing a black shirt, black pants, and white Nike shoes. She lives in Hoover with her parents and was not far from home when she vanished. Her mother said it’s heartbreaking that her daughter disappeared just minutes from the family home. “She was so close,’’ the mother said through tears. What happened the night she disappeared? Thursday night, Russell stopped by Taziki’s at the Colonnade at 9 p.m. to pick up food for herself and her mother. The search began when Hoover 911 at 9:34 p.m. received a call from Russell, said Lt. Daniel Lowe. Russell told the dispatcher that she was near mile marker 11 when she saw a toddler walking alone on the side of I-459 between the flyover to the Galleria and Highway 150. After calling 911, Russell stopped to check on the child and called a family member, Lowe said. The family member lost contact with her, but the line remained open. Officers located Russell’s red Mercedes, still running but vacant. Some of her belongings nearby. They were unable to find her or a child in the area. Hoover police have not received any other calls of someone missing a small child. At 9:36 p.m., her mother, Talitha Russell, said her daughter was on the phone with her brother’s girlfriend. Carlee pulled over after saying she saw a child that appeared to be 3 or 4 years old. “She probably let her guard down thinking 911 would be there in a second‚” Talitha Russell said. “My son’s girlfriend heard her asking the child, ‘Are you OK? She never heard the child say anything but then she heard our daughter scream,’’ Talitha Russell said. “All you hear on her phone is background noise from the interstate.” “Her car door was open,” Talitha said. “They found her phone on the ground, along with her wig and her hat...Her purse was still in the car. Her Apple watch was in her purse and her Air Pods as well.” Talitha Russell said a tip was called in from a trucker. “He saw a gray car with a tall brown skinned man with khaki shorts on leaning over in the car,’’ Talitha Russell said. “The police did find some tire tracks in the grass,’’ she said. “They said because it was not a muddy area, they were not able to determine what type of vehicle it could have been.” What is the status of the search? Rewards totaling $25,000 are being offered, according to police. An anonymous donor has put up $20,000. Additionally, Crime Stoppers is offering up to $5,000. Authorities are not committing to any one theory in Russell’s disappearance, police said at a Friday afternoon press conference. “We currently are investigating every possibility,’’ Lowe said. “We’re certainly leaving nothing off the table.” Police have received numerous tips and each one is assigned to an investigator. “Everything we have at the Hoover Police Department, in addition to our partners, is involved in this investigation right now,” Lowe said. Angela Harris, mother of Aniah Blanchard, joined the search on Friday. Blanchard, a 19-year-old Southern Union Community College student from Homewood, vanished in 2019. More than a month would pass before she would be found dead from multiple gunshot wounds in Macon County. Harris said teams of volunteers spread out from Tuscaloosa to Vestavia Hills to Gardendale to hand out flyers. After investigators finished with their grid search of the area where Russell’s car was found, Harris and Russell’s family and friends conducted one of their own. Harris said the volunteer searchers are limited because there is no place to search. “It’s the most frustrating,’’ she said. “I told the family, whatever you feel in heart, where you think you need to go, go.” Lowe said the information in Russell’s disappearance has been provided to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. If you have any information please contact Detective Brad Fountain at 205-444-7562, Sergeant Drew Mims at 205-739-7274, or Crimestoppers of Metro Alabama at 205-254-7777. https://www.al.com/news/2023/07/car...ut-woman-who-vanished-on-i-459-in-hoover.html
There is some massive evil in the world. There was some learning going on with the folks who deployed to AFG (and I imagine Iraq, but can't speak to that). We actually even made a quote about it..."the things that keep me alive here make me a shitty neighbor back home." Things like "not picking up trash to put it away, or valuables to return them to a lost and found, because you never know what's booby-trapped and has an IED under it." Or seeing from a vehicle on patrol that a kid was seizing out on the sidewalk and citizens were just walking around his twitching body, but we couldn't get out to go across the divided roadway to help. Or helping a crying kid who looked lost because there was a 8y/o carrying a bomb in a bag and asking for help who detonated (and one in my city that stopped before it went off). It's hard to reconcile, for sure. And worth more than a couple of cocktails over the last few years, with no answers yet.
She's been found safe. Story developing. https://www.al.com/news/2023/07/car...e-returns-home-2-days-after-she-vanished.html
Plus she didn't stop when she said she did as she was on the phone with 911 telling them there was a kid walking along the road. She drove 600 feet down the road before getting out and disappearing.
