A Florida judge rejected a proposed plea deal for a former assistant principal accused of killing his former coworker in 2019. The decision came after emotional statements from her family, including her mother, who told the court she wanted the case to go to trial.
Ernest Roberts, 47, appeared in court Friday prepared to plead guilty to second-degree murder in Kameela Russell’s death. Under the proposed agreement, he would have served 30 years in state prison, followed by five years of probation. However, Roberts initially appeared to misunderstand the terms, telling the court he believed he would receive 30 years of probation.
After speaking with his attorney, Roberts said he would accept the prison sentence. But the hearing took a different direction as Russell’s relatives addressed the court and described the loss of the mother of two, whose disappearance in May 2019 ended with the discovery of her body in a Florida canal.
Russell’s younger daughter recalled the last time she saw her mother, who had arrived to pick her up for gymnastics.
“I will always remember the last time I saw her in the driveway to pick me up for gymnastics,” she said. “The moment she drove off, I was so confused.”
Family members last saw Russell alive on May 15, 2019, when she arrived at her sister’s home to pick up her daughter for gymnastics class. However, she drove away before the girl came outside. Phone records showed that Roberts had called Russell around that time, according to an affidavit reviewed by Court TV.
Roberts had known Russell for more than 30 years and was the godfather to her children. He had also previously worked as an assistant principal at Norland Senior High School in Miami Gardens, where Russell also worked as a test administrator. He had left that position about seven months before she disappeared.
Prosecutors said surveillance footage captured Russell leaving her sister’s driveway and traveling to Roberts’ home. Ten days later, a teenager found her body wrapped in a tarp and floating in a canal near Roberts’ house.
A medical examiner determined that Russell died from blunt force injuries to both sides of her head and classified her death as a homicide.
Phone records placed Russell at Roberts’ home, where investigators believe she died before he disposed of her Audi, according to the arrest warrant.
A search of the home uncovered Russell’s blood in the master bedroom, along with signs that someone had tried to clean it using bleach, the warrant states.
After Russell disappeared, Roberts allegedly called a school employee and directed them to a file cabinet. Inside was a set of Audi car keys and a handwritten note: “Do you know anyone that can chop up a car? If so, or make it ‘disappear,’ take these keys. It’s behind the Speedway racetrack on 441 by the county line. Friends are gone and need it to disappear. If not, leave it + I’ll work it out later. Throw this note away.”
That employee called the police, telling them that Roberts had also called and said, “I did something crazy.” Roberts also allegedly claimed he struck an intruder with a baseball bat, wrapped the body in a tarp, and dragged it through his home.
Authorities later found Russell’s Audi at the location listed in the note and discovered her body wrapped in a tarp in a canal. DNA testing linked blood in Roberts’ home to Russell, according to the warrant.
Police have never said what motive Roberts would have for killing Russell. However, there was speculation that they may have had a romantic connection.
Russell’s eldest daughter shared a heartbreaking account of the pain and challenges the family faced following her mother’s death.
“At her funeral, I didn’t get the chance to hold my mom’s hand one last time, because there was nothing to hold,” she told the court. “There wasn’t a casket at my mom’s funeral. There was a picture of her and an urn.”
She also spoke directly to Roberts, describing the violence inflicted on her mother and condemning the proposed resolution.
“She was thrown into the canal like trash, and she was left there to rot,” the daughter said.
Turning toward Roberts, she requested that Court staff turn her mother’s picture to face Roberts. She continued: “You are not a man. You are an overgrown child with no dignity, no morals, and no moral compass.”
She later called him “a mouse of a man” and “a weak monster hiding behind whatever scraps of courage you can convince yourself you possess.”
Judge Alberto Milian paused after the family’s statements and addressed their opposition to the plea agreement. He said Russell’s relatives had supported the proposed resolution after officials consulted them, but acknowledged their pain during the court hearing.
“I don’t want you to leave here thinking that somehow I’m callous or indifferent to your suffering,” Milian said.
The judge then directed prosecutors to speak privately with the family before he made a decision. More than 30 minutes later, the parties returned to the courtroom, and Milian asked Russell’s mother whether she wanted him to accept the agreement.
“Do you want me to accept the plea?” he asked.
When she answered ‘no’, Milian rejected the deal and ordered the case to proceed toward trial.
“I’m sorry I cannot give you any closure on this case,” the judge said. “I bear full responsibility. Maybe I should have spoken with you all before the plea was even presented to me.”
Immediately after the ruling, Roberts’ attorney made an oral request for Milian to recuse himself from the case. The judge granted the request, saying he wanted to ensure Roberts received the same rights as any other defendant.
“It’s my privilege to grant him his rights, as I would any other defendant,” Milian said. “So, I will do that.”
