Inverness man’s murder trial rescheduled

Published 5:11 pm Thursday, July 29, 2010

The trial of an Inverness man accused of killing an 11-year-old girl has been rescheduled.

Ryan Gerald Russell, 37, is now scheduled to stand trial in the Shelby County Circuit Court Sept. 20, according to Circuit Court Judge Michael Joiner.

Russell is charged with killing 11-year-old Katherine Helen Gillespie in June 2008.

According to the Shelby County Sherriff’s Office, authorities found what appeared to be Gillespie’s body in a garbage can in the back of a Cadillac Escalade at the suspect’s house at 5048 Kerry Downs Road.

Sheriff’s deputies then entered the residence and found Russell laying in the fetal position in his shower.

After performing an autopsy on Gillespie, authorities concluded she had been sexually abused and died of a .40-caliber gunshot wound to the head.

Russell is currently being held in the Shelby County Jail without bond on capital murder charges.