[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 53 (Tuesday, April 14, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E485]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  IN REMEMBRANCE OF DARREN E. RUSSELL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BRAD SHERMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 14, 2015

  Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the tenth 
anniversary of the death of Mr. Darren E. Russell, the son of my 
constituent, Ms. Maxine Russell.
   In 2005, at the time of Mr. Russell's untimely death, many young 
U.S. citizens were employed as language instructors in China, due to 
increased demand for English language skills in connection with the 
upcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics. Like many Americans, Darren sought out 
this opportunity to work in a different culture, and to improve ties 
between the United States and the people of China.
   Darren was loved by his students, who gave him a Chinese nickname 
that translates to ``White Rabbit.'' While he enjoyed teaching his 
students, his relationship with his employer was not good. He was 
reportedly required to work seven days a week, and was subjected to 
substandard working conditions by his employing school, the Decai 
English Language Institute. His employers seized and held his travel 
documents, including his passport.
   Further, his employing school had failed to obtain the proper work 
documentation for Mr. Russell, making him essentially an illegal alien 
in the eyes of Chinese authorities. When Mr. Russell expressed concern 
about his working conditions, he was removed from his employer-provided 
apartment and placed in virtual detention by his employers at the 
Cathay Hotel in Guangzhou. While there, Mr. Russell was robbed, and he 
therefore lacked the financial means to arrange for his departure.
   In a recorded message on his father's cell phone a few hours before 
his death, which was deemed a hit-and-run accident by local 
authorities, Mr. Russell expressed grave concern for his personal 
safety. He sought urgent assistance from his family and the U.S. 
Consulate in order to return to the United States.
   These circumstances raised suspicion that foul play was involved in 
his death. A subsequent autopsy was conducted by a board-certified 
pathologist in Los Angeles, California, in March of 2007. The 
pathologist concluded that Mr. Russell was murdered by blunt force 
trauma to the head; his injuries were found inconsistent with a motor 
vehicle accident by the pathologist.
   Darren's mother has spent the ten years since April 14, 2005 seeking 
justice for Darren and the truth about what happened that day. She 
continues to seek information about the circumstances leading up to his 
death, and the inability of U.S. officials to render effective 
assistance to Darren after his pleas for help.
   Darren is remembered by those who knew him as a caring and effective 
teacher, someone who tried to build bridges between the American and 
the Chinese people. I hope that both the U.S. and Chinese governments 
will assist his mother's efforts to determine what happened to her son 
ten years ago this week.

                          ____________________