Murder Suspect Was Abused By Stepfather, Papers Confirm Admission Tells Only A Small Part Of Her Story, Her Lawyers Caution

Susan Smith, who is accused of drowning her two young sons, was molested by her stepfather when she was 16, the man admitted in court papers that were unsealed Monday.

The admission, signed in 1988, tells only a small part of her story, her lawyers cautioned.

“No single piece of information about Susan Vaughan Smith’s life explains her,” lawyers David Bruck and Judy Clarke said Monday.

Bruck has not said whether he will use the allegations as part of Smith’s defense.

The 23-year-old woman faces two murder charges and potential execution in the Oct. 25 drowning deaths of her sons, 3-year-old Michael and 14-month-old Alex.

The court papers released Monday said Beverly Russell abused his stepdaughter by “participating in open mouth kissing, fondling her breasts and by the stepfather placing the minor’s hand on him in and about the genital area.”

Russell was never charged with any crime but signed a March 25, 1988, court order agreeing that the allegations were true. The order does not say when the incident happened.

Family Court Judge Lee Alford agreed last month to release the records after two newspapers, The (Columbia) State and The Greenville News, sued to see them.

Russell, 47, a stockbroker and tax consultant and member of the state Republican Party’s executive committee, decided Friday not to appeal the decision. His attorney said last week he would have no comment on the file’s contents.

During her youth, Smith twice attempted suicide, according to court papers. Her father committed suicide when she was 7.

Bruck is expected to tell a judge by the end of the month if he expects to pursue an insanity defense. The lawyer has said Smith takes anti-psychotic medicine and writes desperate letters to her dead children.

The 1988 court order, signed by then-Family Court Judge David Wilburn, says Russell and the family agreed to undergo counseling.

It also says Russell agreed to live apart from his stepdaughter until a therapist and the Department of Social Services agreed it was safe for them to be reunited.

Court documents do not say if or how long the family lived apart.