In a statement issued by the New York State Supreme Court, Alden County, and the Albion Sheriff’s Department, a contingent of state troopers will assist with crowd control when one of the state’s most infamous inmates, #83X-3106, makes her first court appearance in nearly three years, as state prosecutors try to convince Judge Howard Lowery to delay Russell’s planned release until the termination of her sentence in April, 2024. While such a delay is unlikely, the hearing could mark the final step in the process, which would see the state’s most prolific female murderer walk free in late October.
“We’ll have plenty of officers on site as well as assistance from troopers,” Albion Sheriff Kevin Donetti told reporters. “We understand what this means to people, and we have one goal, that’s to keep everyone safe. Everybody from protesters to the media contingent to family members. We don’t want to interfere with anyone’s right to make their voice heard, but we will be out in numbers to ensure nothing gets heated.” The hearing is expected to last no more than thirty minutes, and is scheduled for Thursday, July 27th, sometime between 10am and 11:30am. No information was made available concerning Miss Russell’s transport from the Albion Correctional Facility to the courthouse. While it is unclear just how many Albion officers have been assigned to the detail, an internal memo leaked from Colonel Sam DeWilde, Deputy Superintendent of the New York State Police, suggesting that they were assigning 30 troopers to the courthouse. No one from the agency responded to requests for comment.
