BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) — Carlee Russell, a nursing student who made international news when she faked her own kidnapping over the summer, was found guilty of the false report.
During a municipal court hearing Wednesday, Judge Brad Bishop found Russell guilty of filing a false police report and falsely reporting the incident, where she reported seeing a child walking along I-459 before she went missing on July 13. On July 15, she walked back to her home in Hoover, where she told police that she had been abducted.
However, after a days-long investigation by police into Russell’s statement, she admitted she had made the whole thing up.
Bishop ordered Russell to pay $831 for each misdemeanor charge, as well as over $17,000 in restitution.
Russell, who pleaded not guilty in the case, will appeal the decision to the circuit court.