HOOVER, Ala. —

Hoover police are continuing the investigation into the disappearance of "Carlee" Nichole Russell after she was found alive and safe Saturday night.

The child reported in the 911 call made Thursday night by Russell was reported as a male toddler wearing a diaper, according to police. It was the only report about a toddler made to Hoover 911 Thursday.

At 10:44 p.m. Saturday, police said they received a call that Russell had returned home on foot.

Police responded to the scene to investigate and Hoover fire medics responded to the scene to assess and transported Russell to UAB hospital for evaluation.

Talitha Russell, Carlee Russell's mother, posted on Facebook Sunday morning that "God is faithful and He has answered (their) prayers."

The family is asking for privacy at this time and plans to speak in the "near future," according to their post.

The disappearance

On Thursday night, around 9:34 p.m., Hoover 911 received a call from Russell stating she saw a male toddler in a diaper on the interstate near the John Hawkins Parkway exit.

Police said Russell was the only caller to report a toddler along the interstate Thursday night.

She was on her way home from her job at the Woodhouse Day Spa in the Summit, stopped to get food at The Colonnade and was about 10 minutes from her house, according to her parents, Talitha and Carlos Russell.

Video below: Timeline of the disappearance of Carlee Russell

Carlee Russell then stopped to check on the child and called a family member, according to police. The family told investigators that they lost contact with her, but the phone line remained open.

When police arrived, they found Carlee Russell's car and belongings, but there was no sign of her or a toddler.

Police have not been able to locate anyone with Carlee Russell from the time she left where she picked up food to the time she made the 911 phone call.

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Family gathered to search for Carlee Russell Friday morning at the Hoover Met and asked for help.

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"We're just gonna scour the earth," said Carlee Russell's dad, Carlos Russell. "There's no stopping us."

Her parents noted that there is a report from a trucker who said they saw her car with the door open and a grey vehicle had pulled in front of it.

The Russells also said they believe that the child was used as 'bait' in order to lure Russell out of her car.

Video below: Carlee Russell's family describes her

Anyone who has any information about this case is asked to call Det. Brad Fountain at 205-444-7562.

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This is a developing story and will be updated as information becomes available.

RIVERHEAD, N.Y. —

Authorities on Long Island are vowing to continue investigating a string of killings known as the Gilgo Beach murders after charging an architect in the deaths of three of the 11 victims.

Rex Heuermann, 59, is accused of killing Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello over a decade ago. He is also considered the prime suspect in the death of another woman, Maureen Brainard-Barnes.

Their bodies were bound and hidden in thick underbrush along a remote beach highway across the bay from the Massapequa Park community where Heuermann has lived all his life. Investigators have said it’s unlikely just one person killed all the victims.

“We’re going to continue to work, investigate, and try to get a small measure of closure for all the victims' families,” Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Heuermann, 59, was arrested late Thursday, a year and a half after authorities formed an interagency task force with investigators from the FBI, as well as state and local police departments, aimed at solving the case. He was charged Friday.

Heuermann was first identified as a suspect in March 2022, when detectives linked him to a pickup truck that a witness reported seeing when one of the victims disappeared in 2010. In March, detectives recovered Heuermann's DNA from a pizza crust he discarded and matched it to evidence found on one of the victims, authorities said.

“They never stopped working and will continue to work tirelessly until we bring justice to all the families involved,” Suffolk County police Commissioner Rodney Harrison said.

Heuermann was ordered jailed without bail after his lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf at an arraignment Friday in state court in Riverhead. In denying bail, Judge Richard Ambro cited “the extreme depravity” of Heuermann's alleged conduct.

Heuermann’s lawyer, Michael Brown, said his client told him: “I didn't do this.”

Investigators were continuing to search Heuermann's home, about a 25-minute drive across a causeway spanning South Oyster Bay to the sandy stretch known as Gilgo Beach where the remains were found in 2010 and 2011.

Most of the victims were young women who had been sex workers. Their deaths long stumped investigators, and the mystery fueled immense public attention and led to a 2020 Netflix film, “Lost Girls.”

Authorities on Long Island are vowing to continue investigating a string of killings known as the Gilgo Beach murders after charging an architect in the deaths of three of the 11 victims.

Rex Heuermann, 59, is accused of killing Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello over a decade ago. He is also considered the prime suspect in the death of another woman, Maureen Brainard-Barnes.

Their bodies were bound and hidden in thick underbrush along a remote beach highway across the bay from the Massapequa Park community where Heuermann has lived all his life. Investigators have said it’s unlikely just one person killed all the victims.

“We’re going to continue to work, investigate, and try to get a small measure of closure for all the victims' families,” Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Heuermann, 59, was arrested late Thursday, a year and a half after authorities formed an interagency task force with investigators from the FBI, as well as state and local police departments, aimed at solving the case. He was charged Friday.

Heuermann was first identified as a suspect in March 2022, when detectives linked him to a pickup truck that a witness reported seeing when one of the victims disappeared in 2010. In March, detectives recovered Heuermann's DNA from a pizza crust he discarded and matched it to evidence found on one of the victims, authorities said.

“They never stopped working and will continue to work tirelessly until we bring justice to all the families involved,” Suffolk County police Commissioner Rodney Harrison said.

Heuermann was ordered jailed without bail after his lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf at an arraignment Friday in state court in Riverhead. In denying bail, Judge Richard Ambro cited “the extreme depravity” of Heuermann's alleged conduct.

Heuermann’s lawyer, Michael Brown, said his client told him: “I didn't do this.”

Investigators were continuing to search Heuermann's home, about a 25-minute drive across a causeway spanning South Oyster Bay to the sandy stretch known as Gilgo Beach where the remains were found in 2010 and 2011.

Most of the victims were young women who had been sex workers. Their deaths long stumped investigators, and the mystery fueled immense public attention and led to a 2020 Netflix film, “Lost Girls.”

What started as a rescue call ended with a moment of kindness thanks to police officers in Nebraska.

Karen Ressegieu recently woke up to find her husband unresponsive.

"I woke up at 1:30 a.m., and he was still breathing. So, I, evidently, I went back to sleep, I'd never heard him. And at 6:15 a.m. I got up because we had a funeral that morning," Ressegieu said.

When medics arrived, they performed multiple rounds of CPR before telling Ressegieu her husband had died.

Despite the devastating news, Officer John Danderand said Ressegieu still kept putting everyone else first.

"She had a lot going on, she had some neighbors stopping by trying to figure things out, get information from her. And she had mentioned about three times that she had to get a cake frosted, they were supposed to attend a funeral that morning," he said.

Danderand decided to jump in to help.

"They said, 'Karen, can I frost that cake?'" Ressegieu said.

Sgt. Kraig Gomon said he snapped a couple of pictures to serve as a memory down the line, but it captured a part of the job that goes on behind the scenes.

"She was just more worried about everybody else than herself. And that was what struck me the most as her kindness. And for me, it was a small gesture for us to be able to try to return that to her," Gomon said.

Ressegieu said that morning was a blur, so having officers she could rely on helped her through the loss of her husband.

"And they said, so where does it go? And I pointed to where, so they delivered the cake, too," Ressegieu said.

It was a somber day made a little sweeter by a simple gesture.

"They just showed lots of kindness, you know, going out of their way," she said.

SHEBOYGAN FALLS, Wis. — Logan Mohr is your typical 4-year-old boy. He loves his toys, his trucks, and most importantly, his family. Now, this tiny, but mighty, 4-year-old is being called a hero for saving his mom's life.

"​By God's grace, he gave me and my husband a son that knew what to do," said Logan's mom, Kayla Mohr.

Kayla Mohr suffers from chronic seizures. She says Logan is no stranger to her episodes and always does what he can to help.

"​As he got older, we were like okay, when this happens to mommy, go get daddy," she said.

Last month, while Kayla Mohr was getting Logan ready for school, she knew something was off. Her husband was at work. She sat down, called 911, and put the phone on speaker. Minutes later, she began to seize.

LISTEN to the full 911 phone call:

Sheboygan Falls 4-year-old calls 911, saves mom suffering from seizure

Dispatcher: "911, what's the address of your emergency? Hello?"
Logan: "My mommy is having an episode."

It was the first time she heard the 911 recording between the dispatcher and her son, who could let emergency officials know what was happening.

Logan: "She's shaking her head and her legs."
Dispatcher: "Okay, is she able to talk to me on the phone?"
Logan: "No."
Dispatcher: "Do you know if that's called a seizure?"
Logan: "Yeah."

"​I was feeling brave," said Logan.

Logan stayed on the phone until paramedics arrived and Kayla Mohr was able to get the help she needed.

"You can't train a kid to just do that," said Kayla Mohr. "It was just instinct."

Logan received a life-saving certificate and two medals from the Sheboygan County Sheriff's office for his bravery. An honor fit for a hero.

"He's my little superman," said Kayla Mohr.

This article was written by Taylor Lumpkin for WTMJ.

LAS VEGAS — A newly-released 911 call recording from the night of a UNLV fraternity's amateur charity boxing event is shining more light on what happened in the moments after a participant collapsed.

He died days later.

Nathan Valencia, 20, died on Nov. 23 after taking part in a boxing match on Nov. 19.

His death was ruled a homicide by the coroner's office.

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told 13 Action News in a statement, "Although Mr. Valencia's death is tragic, the circumstances surrounding his death are not criminal, and no charges will be filed."

The agency says the definition of homicide is "an act of a human killing another person" and that it did not have information that there is any criminality on the part of the venue.

Meanwhile, the Nevada State Athletic Commission investigates the "fight night" event.

Below is a transcript of the 911 call obtained by 13 Action News and provided by Clark County. The transcript has been shortened for clarity, and parts of the recording have been redacted, per HIPAA.

Caller: We are at the Sahara Event Center. There's a roller hockey rink. We need medics here like right now.

911 Operator: What's the number that you're calling from? What happened?

Caller: So we're hosting a fight night for a fraternity's charity, and something happened, and we're not sure what happened. There's a fight that broke out, and one of the fighters, like, actually got injured. The address is 800 Karen Avenue, Las Vegas, Nevada, 89109.

Operator: All right, so I just want to make sure, like, when you said you guys are holding a fight event, this wasn't like an assault, correct?

Caller: No. No, not an assault.

Operator: All right. Are you with the patient right now?

Caller: Yes.

Operator: I have help already started, OK? Just a couple of questions. Is there any serious bleeding?

[redacted]

Operator: Is he completely alert?

[redacted]

Operator: Alright, so I have paramedics already on the way, OK? Just stay on the line. I'll tell you exactly what to do next. Just make sure not to do not move him unless he is in danger.

[inaudible]

Caller: He's in the ring. We only have eight people here in the ring. Everyone else is out. We have nurses here, but we need, like, real medical.

Operator: I understand, and they're already on the way, OK? They are coming to you guys, lights and sirens. Just make sure nothing -

Caller: Do you know how long?

Operator: Well, they're coming lights and siren, and so it's just going to be a short time between when they get there, okay? They're not too far from you guys. Just nothing for him to eat or drink. That might make him sick or cause further problems.

Caller: They said to give him water. Like, lots of water.

Operator: No, no, no — do not.

Caller: No water!

Operator: And then do not move him unless it's absolutely necessary. OK?

Caller: OK.

Operator: Alright, I'm going to go ahead and stay on the line with you, okay? As long as I can. Just watch him closely and look for any changes.

Around the five-minute mark of the call, the operator says, "It looks like the ambulance is there. They're going to grab your equipment, and they'll be right in. I need you to tell me as soon as they're inside."

About one minute later, the caller is heard saying, "Oh my god, did he get hit with something or? Is the main event of the fight that happened the last event? If we're being honest, I was in the VIP section, and then a citizen fight kind of broke, but everyone's fine there. And then, all of a sudden, he's on the floor."

Around six minutes and thirty seconds, the caller asks, "Why did I have to be the one to call 9-1-1?"

The operator reassures her by saying, "Because you are the most calm one to do it for me."

At six minutes and 50 seconds, the caller confirms, "Okay, the paramedics are here."

The "fight night" was organized by the Kappa Sigma fraternity, which has had its activities suspended while the incident is investigated. Its international headquarters is also reviewing whether the local chapter followed internal policies and standards.

UNLV has since announced it will start looking into new safety protocols going forward. The university has more than 300 student groups, and it is currently reviewing the safety of all of them.

Scripps' Vegas station KTNV first reported this story.

CHULA VISTA, Calif. — Cities across the country are answering calls for police reform, banning controversial tactics, and slashing police budgets.

A Southern California police department is taking a different approach, using drones to earn the public's trust.

“Most agencies that have drone programs, they have the traditional drone in the trunk, where the officer responds to a call for service. They see a drone may be needed, they launch it," said Captain Don Redmond, a support operations captain for the Chula Vista Police Department (CVPD) "We wanted to be proactive in how we responded with our drones."

Redmond says they're using drones as a tool for de-escalation, arming officers with information. Drones are only launched in response to calls for service; surveillance is prohibited.

“We have heard the national message that law enforcement needs to do things differently," said Capt. Redmond.

The department spent years developing its Drone as First Responder (DFR) program. They formed a committee in 2015, studying best practices, policies, and procedures for the use of drones in law enforcement.

“We had a drone program for about a year before we ever bought a drone. We reached out to the public, we reached out to the ACLU, we developed policies," said Capt. Redmond.

CVPD was the only law enforcement agency selected for the FAA's Integration Pilot Project, a federal initiative designed to help integrate drones into the National Air Space.

“We are the only agency in the entire country to be staging drones and launching them for calls for service, for emergencies," said Capt. Redmond.

Perched on tall buildings, the drones are prepped and ready to respond to calls. Like a self-driving car, the drone can get to a scene with the push of a button.

The drone is often the first to arrive, live streaming video to officers in real-time.

Agent Matt Hardesty, a DFR teleoperator, decides which calls to send the drone to.

“I can hear something, the urgency, and can typically be on scene in 120 seconds, many times before the call is typed and entered into the dispatch center," said Agent Hardesty.

A 27-year veteran of the force, officers in the field rely on his experience to get the most accurate information in fast-moving situations.

“It is probably by far the best de-escalation tool I’ve ever seen in my career," said Hardesty. "We get calls of people possibly armed, and with the powerful camera I’m able to zoom in and be able to see if their hands are empty and be able to let officers on the ground know.”

In 2019, the drone responded to a report of a man waving a handgun outside a taco shop. Within 90 seconds, Agent Hardesty had eyes on the suspect.

Through the live stream, officers confirmed the suspect was holding what looked to be a gun but saw he was sitting down and not threatening anyone.

“As we watched him with the drone footage, and the officers watched, they soon saw him take that handgun and light a cigarette and we realized it was a lighter," said Capt. Redmond. "So, officers immediately made contact. No guns were drawn. No shooting.”

The department launches drones from two locations and is working with the FAA to establish three more. Redmond says this would give the department 100 percent coverage of the city.

The agency is also the first to live stream 911 calls directly to officers.

“As opposed to getting the paraphrase of what the caller told the call-taker, who then tells the dispatcher, who paraphrases it and gives the officers just a small amount of information," said Redmond.

Officers get information quickly and can make decisions based on what they see and hear minutes before arriving at a call.

Agencies in the U.S., and around the world, are now looking to adopt the drone program. But innovations designed to rebuild trust can also sow mistrust in communities.

More than just technology, agencies must invest in transparency, which Redmond says has been the key to their program's success.

STOCKTON, Calif. — Mannequins floating in water near a California highway were mistaken for bodies and prompted people to call 911.

California Highway Patrol (CHP) – Stockton posted photos of the plastic models and reassured the Stockton community that nobody was harmed.

CHP told KOVR that officers received a 911 call around 8 a.m. Monday from a trucker who spotted the mannequin carnage.

CHP Officer Ruben Jones told KOVR that the incident was taken very seriously, since homicides have surged in the area over the last year.

But once officers realized real humans weren’t involved, they got the green light to have a little fun with the situation online.

CHP jokingly posted on Facebook about “the Stockton Kraken” getting revenge on Valentine’s Day. Officers hoped the community would find humor in the situation, as they did.

"Sometimes we see the worst scenarios in different situations, but this one we got a good laugh out of it and a good chuckle,” Jones told KOVR.

The mannequins were quickly removed from the water, so others wouldn’t mistake them for bodies.

As for where they came from, that remains a mystery. Though, authorities say litter is often found in the area.