An Alabama woman who lied about her kidnapping was ordered to pay nearly $18,000 in restitution and sentenced to probation during a court appearance on Thursday, ABC News has confirmed. Carlee Russell was charged with two misdemeanors for making false statements to police in July. Russell...
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Russell pleaded not guilty in October to false reporting to law enforcement authorities and falsely reporting an incident. A municipal judge at that time found her guilty of the charges and recommended that she spend a year in jail and pay nearly $18,000 in restitution.
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Russell's legal team found the restitution fair but appealed the conviction in an effort to avoid jail time. A state trial was set to begin this week but was removed from the docket and Thursday's plea hearing was scheduled instead.
During the hearing Thursday, Russell pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to 12 months supervised probation, community service and evidence of continued mental health counseling, and she must pay $17,974.88 restitution to the city of Hoover.