A former Washington State University student who fled to Ireland after a deadly drunk driving crash has been released from prison.
Frederick David Russell walked free Tuesday after serving roughly half of his 14-year sentence.
Russell was convicted in 2007 of killing three fellow students in a fiery, head-on wreck near Pullman. At the time of the accident in 2001, Russell was studying criminal justice at WSU and his father was the head of that program.
After being charged, Russell disappeared and was placed on the U.S. Marshals’ 15 Most Wanted list. In 2005, Russell was captured in Ireland and brought back to stand trial.
The case was so high-profile the trial was moved to southwest Washington. Russell was sentenced to 14-years in prison, but was eligible for release now because of good behavior and credit for time served in jails in Washington and in Ireland while he was fighting extradition.
Russell plans to move to California where he will be supervised by that state’s Department of Corrections for the next 18 months.
Copyright 2015 Northwest News Network
