Friends Remember Murder Victim Kenneth Russell

Days before his murder, Kenny Russell’s long lost childhood friend had thought to reach out to him.

Beth Nelson, hundreds of miles away in Jacksonville, Florida, had something of a premonition.

“I am close to hiring a private detective to find him. Just to know if he is ok or what happened to him,” Nelson wrote in an email to a mutual friend on January 27. “How can someone just disappear?!”

On January 31, Russell, 55, was found dead. He had been living in a Hybla Valley apartment with a roommate, Calvin Johnson. Johnson was charged with his death and is currently being held at the Fairfax County Jail.

Russell’s family and friends, meanwhile, are trying to piece together the last years of Russell’s life after he all but ended communication with his close friends and family.

“We are puzzled as to why he chose not to communicate with us anymore,” said his Cindy Palladino, who knew him since high school.  “Perhaps it was painful for him to try and keep in touch, I don't know.  It's a shame and there are many unanswered questions that we will never understand now.”

Russell grew up in Falls Church. His longtime friend, Nelson, 56, had known Russell since the ninth grade when they both attended Falls Church High School.  He was the fourth child of five brothers and sisters.

“He just kind of disappeared from [his family] about 25 years ago,” Nelson said in a telephone interview. “He disappeared from my life about 7 years ago. It was a shame because I would have loved to have him.”

Friends said Russell had a habit of loosing touch.

“He was fiercely loyal and very private,” Palladino said. “As close as I was to him, there were still many things I didn't know about him.”

What they did know was that Russell was a hopeless romantic, a crossword puzzle virtuoso, and a college football fan. He loved the peace and quiet of the Shenandoah Valley. He read and quoted philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Palladino and Russell also attended Falls Church high school, where they dated in school and for some time after, Palladino wrote in an email interview. The two had a son together, though Russell was not a part of his son’s life until he was 20 years old, Palladino said. By that time, Palladino had married another man.

“Kenny tried to connect with Chris [their son].  We all spent some time together, but it was, of course, like being with a stranger for each of them,” Palladino said. “I was sad that they had not gotten to know each other.”

Russell lost touch with both of them in recent years. 

He also lost touch with Nelson sometime after he had asked her to marry him after their 25th year high school reunion.

“He was wishing it was going to happen,” Nelson said. “The poor guy had told his boss we were going to get married. It wasn’t the right time for me, but I always loved Kenny as a dear friend.”

Nelson and Russell also had lifestyle differences. Russell had been in and out of rehabilitation facilities for alcohol abuse years, though Russell had never allowed Nelson to see him drunk.

Friends figured that Russell had stayed in the Virginia area, changing addresses over the years.

Nelson and Palladino, who were mutual friends, tried to look for Russell at rehabilitation facilities back in January, but by law the centers could not release any personal information about him or whether he was staying there.

The last time that Nelson head Russell’s voice was about 7 years ago at about 10:30 p.m. Her phone rang with a collect call from “Kenny Russell,” he said. “Press 1 or say yes to accept the call,” the automated recording recited.

“I started to press 1 but we lost the connection,” Nelson said. “That was the last contact and I prayed he would call me back. Why didn’t I just say ‘yes’? It’s a horrible guilt I felt. I never was able to contact him again. We tried desperately but we couldn’t find him.”

Friends and family held a memorial service for Russell on February 12. His ashes were spread by his mother's grave and in the Shenandoah Valley.