Russ was born in San Diego, and was raised in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. After graduating from high school, he served a two-year church mission in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. After his mission, he attended Utah Valley University (then Utah Valley State College) and received his Associate's degree with an emphasis in Spanish. He then attended Brigham Young University where he received a Bachelor's degree in Sociology. Russ worked for the Utah County Juvenile Court prior to entering law school at Lewis & Clark Law School (then Northwestern School of Law at Lewis & Clark College), receiving his Juris Doctorate degree in 2005. After working in the corporate office of a construction supply company, Russ moved to Visalia in 2007 and became a Deputy District Attorney with the Tulare County District Attorney's Office. Russ transitioned to civil law in 2011 and became an associate attorney with the firm. In 2018, Russ became a named partner of now Williams, Brodersen, Pritchett & Burke LLP where he practices in business and estate planning, real estate, agricultural law, and civil litigation.

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Russ married his wife, Mahina, in 1996. They have five children. Russ and Mahina enjoy being involved in their children's' lives, which mainly revolve around sports including: basketball, rugby, volleyball, and Zumba. He is also actively involved within the Visalia community and currently serves on the CASA of Tulare County.