San Diego

The mother-in-law of murder defendant Charles Russ told a Superior Court jury Thursday she doesn’t believe Russ’ story of why her artist daughter left home the night she was slain.

Ginger Allen dabbed her eyes as she testified Thursday that the defendant had told her that Pamela Russ, 33, had left her Leucadia home about midnight on the night of the killing to get some photo negatives from her studio.

The victim’s body was found Feb. 1, 1987 on North Torrey Pines Road in La Jolla. She had been run over by her own Mercedes-Benz.

Charles Russ, 40, is charged with her murder and with bilking Allen of her life savings, $83,000.

Allen testified that Russ told her about his wife’s supposed midnight trip to her studio the week she died.

“I said, ‘Why, Chuck, why would she get up and out of bed (to go to her studio)?’ He said, ‘No, she wasn’t in bed (then).’ ”

“I said, ‘Why did you let her go?’ He said he’d have to live with that for the rest of his life,” Allen told the court.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Mark Pettine showed Allen her daughter’s photo album.

As Allen leafed through the album, she said she believes her daughter had the negatives for the pictures at home and doesn’t believe her daughter left home to get them.

“Pamela was that organized,” Allen said.

The trial will continue Tuesday, when Allen will resume her testimony.