Listen to the latest episode: Join Nancy Grace for her new online video series designed to help you protect what you love most your children. Though 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson's death was ruled accidental after his body was found inside a gym mat on January 11, 2013, many suspect foul play. CNN gained access to the schools security footage on the day that Kendrick Johnson was killed, but upon viewing it, realized that it offered little insight into what happened that day. [28] Shortly after receiving the case, Dettlebach also resigned. NY Daily News/Valdosta/Lowndes Regional Crime Labratory via CNN. Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk told WSB-TV his office reviewed the FBIs findings, as well as 17 boxes of evidence, and reached that decision. [14] The governor's office released a statement indicating that they would await the report of the U.S. Kendrick didnt deserve this., Following public outcry, the Justice Department also investigated Kendricks death in 2013 and closed its case in 2016, finding insufficient evidence to support federal criminal charges., The report from the Lowndes County Sheriffs Office was published by the Valdosta Daily Times newspaper on Wednesday. But, There are some strange pieces to this case. The Suspicious Death of Kendrick Johnson.Plus many more disturbing stories.The stories in this Episodes are shocking and exhibit human behavior at its absolute worst. Theyre not going to uncover something that they covered up., Kendrick Johnson investigation: Feds will not file charges, I am quite sure that there will still be a contingent that will believe there was foul play, the sheriff wrote in the report. They purchased this from an individual and he did not give them his true name. Allegedly they were in an altercation on a school bus prior to Kendricks death. In the latest report, Paulk dispelled rumors that Johnson and the Bell brothers had any contact on the day Johnson died. Kendrick Johnson's Family's Quest For Answers Moves To Georgia Capitol", "National Civil Rights Attorney No Longer Involved In Kendrick Johnson Case | Valdosta Today", "Kendrick Johnson family holds rally after filing complaint about missing organs", "Parents of Georgia teen found dead in gym mat sue funeral home", "No Wrongdoing Detected in Kendrick Johnson Funeral Home Probe", "Kendrick Johnson footage released; expert finds it 'highly suspicious', "Rose, Touchton believe no coverup in Johnson case", "Georgia school officials sued in Kendrick Johnson's gym death", "Local, federal investigations into gym mat death continue", "FBI agent, wife file $5 million defamation suit against Ebony.com and crime writer for KJ stories", "Parents File $100 Million Suit in Gym-Mat Death of Georgia Teen Kendrick Johnson", "Second U.S. Attorney in charge of KJ case resigns", "Kendrick Johnson probe: Attorney exits mark shift", "KJ Family Drops $100 Million Wrongful Death Suit | Valdosta Today", "US Justice Department: No criminal charges in gym mat death", "Judge: Parents owe $292,000 for suit in son's gym mat death", "Investigation into death of Georgia teen found in a rolled-up gym mat 8 years ago will be reopened", "Georgia sheriff vows to personally, thoroughly investigate re-opened case of teen found dead in gym mat", "Sheriff reopens Kendrick Johnson case in Valdosta", "A second local investigation into the death of a Georgia teen found in a rolled-up gym mat has closed with no charges filed", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Death_of_Kendrick_Johnson&oldid=1136987199. Its an active case so the contents of the recording or anything else, were not going to divulge right now, Paulk said. The findings of the second autopsy, that Johnsons death was not accidental and caused by blunt force trauma likely due to being struck in the neck with a 45lb dumbbell, were confirmed. Pure evil. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much The dead teens mother, Jaqueline Johnson, told the TV station she is not surprised by the sheriffs findings. Itll be a lot of work, he explained. Theres still a lot of questions people want answered," Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk said. We already knew what team you were on. The new findings were the result of a second investigation by the Lowndes County Sheriffs Office following one by the FBI. As parents, our hearts are broken, but we are determined to prevent a tragedy of this magnitude from occurring again., In March of last year, the family received an audio clip from a tipster who was paid for the information; in part, the voice said, I was just young and stupid. Eight years ago, classmates at Lowndes High School in Valdosta found 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson's body inside an upright mat. You do not believe there was anything criminal? Thomas asked Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk. According to CNN, funeral director Antonio Harrington claimed the 17-year-olds organs were destroyed through [the] natural process due to the position of his body when he died. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! S3 Ep 26 "Results" The Kendrick Johnson Investigation - Investigative True Crime Series In this episode Ash and her team head to North Carolina. By clicking Sign Up, I confirmthat I have read and agreeto the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. Valdosta, Georgia CNN For the local sheriff's department, the death of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson is a closed book: A tragedy, but an accident. [12][16] Johnson's family filed a complaint with a regulatory body against the funeral home operator. Attorney. [1][2][3][4] After a preliminary investigation and autopsy concluded that Johnson's death was accidental, his family had a private pathologist conduct a second autopsy which concluded that he died from blunt force trauma. [12] The funeral home owner stated that it is standard practice to fill a void in this fashion, and that cotton or sawdust may also be employed for this purpose. Earlier in March, Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk announced that officials were reopening the investigation and reevaluating the previously-sealed evidence. The Bells father, a former FBI agent, is accused of directing officials to obscure the investigation, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Johnson was the main "sniper" for the 103 gang, Seely said. Kendrick Johnson was a 17-year-old student at Lowndes County High School. Jackie Johnson told Thomas moments after the sheriff released his findings that shell continue to ask the Department of Justice to reopen its investigation. [11] A student at the school said that he shared a pair of Adidas shoes with Johnson, and that after gym class Johnson would always "go to the mats, jump up and toss the shoes inside the middle of the hole. Paulks 16-page report, which was released Wednesday and published on Scribd, is divided into nine categories, including conspiring/cover, shoe storage in wresting mats, a fight that occurred on a bus trip among the wrestling team of which Johnson was a member, the teens autopsy and observations after the discovery of his body. But it is what it is.. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more. The body of 17-year-old Johnson was found upside down in a mat in Lowndes County High School in January 2013. VALDOSTA, Ga. - A Georgia sheriff says his office has received new information in the death investigation ofa Valdosta teenager whose body was found at school inside a rolled-up gym mat. Forensic experts are conducting voice comparison analysis on the speaker captured in the recording. In June 2018, Kendrick Johnsons body was exhumed for a second time and a third autopsy was performed. Im going through everything myself, Paulk said,estimatingthat the reopened investigation could last a minimumof six months. Authorities say it appears he was trying to reach for a shoe he had left inside the mat before winter break, got stuck and died. The familys attorney, Chevene King, expressed thatif Kendrick had been white, the case would have been handled differently. Paulk estimated it might take six months to process everything. [6] That lawsuit was subsequently withdrawn. The, death was ultimately ruled accidental and amedical examiner concluded the teen died from, nearly five years ago due to "insufficient evidence", Were actively hunting for the person that provided it, Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk told, . Body Parts Are Missing: Newly-Released Footage of Kendrick Johnsons Last Moments, the Latest in Troubling Death Investigation, Rick Bell, was an FBI special agent who ultimately resigned, Johnsons organs were returned to his body following the autopsy, subscribe to the Crime Stories with Nancy Grace podcast. Download theGrio today! For years, however, the teenagers family has insisted the 17-year-old was murdered and that investigators actively worked to stifle the familys pleas for justice. The case follows a young man that was found dead in 2013. Kendrick Johnsons body rolled up inside the gym mat with his shoes behind his knees. The sheriff says case closed again but he will reopen it if someone brings him verified new information. "Im treating it like its a brand new case," Paulk said, according to the newspaper. You cant do an investigation with the same investigators who covered it up. The Johnsons were extorted out of $1,000 for a tape that contains an individual admitting to their involvement, he alleged. Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more! "Nobody really cares, Jackie Johnson, the teenagers mother, WAGA-TV. In a statement to CNN, the US Attorneys Office for the Middle District of Georgia said, the final conclusion in the Kendrick Johnson investigation was reached and announced in 2016 by the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of Ohio (USAO NDOH), which handled the matter. "[34] On August 10, 2017, Georgia Judge Richard Porter ruled that Johnson's family and their attorney had to pay more than $292,000 in legal fees to the dozens of respondents in their civil suit, writing "testimony shows that they had no evidence to support their claims that the [brothers] killed Johnson or that any of the other defendants engaged in a conspiracy to conceal the cause or manner of Johnson's death. The mat was vertical. [39] He further stated that two brothers, named in previous legal actions by the Johnsons, are not suspects. And, allegedly the FBI agents son told at least two people that he hit Kendrick on the back of the neck with a 45 pound weight. Take a look at the list below for all the gory details! He was never shown within or leaving the gym and indeed, he never did show up for his following classes. [22], Johnson's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Lowndes County Board of Education, its superintendent and the principal of Lowndes High School. [21] The president of the Valdosta-Lowndes County chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the former lead investigator for that chapter have stated that they believe the attorneys for the Johnsons have "not been entirely truthful in their statements" and that there was no cover-up in this case. Its been eight long years, said Kendrick Johnsons mother, Jacquelyn. Investigatorsdeclined to comment on what's said in theaudio but confirmed theyre now tracking down the individual who allegedly sold the tape to Johnsons mother. Kendrick Johnson, center, watches as Assistant District Attorney Sarah Seely, left, hands a piece of evidence to his defense attorneys during the first day of his murder trial Tuesday, Nov . Kendrick Johnsons body inside an upright mat. A sheriff in Valdosta, Georgia, has concluded that there is no evidence of a crime in the January 2013 death of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson, who was found dead in a rolled-up gym mat at. Now, positional asphyxia is a legitimate cause of death. Local law enforcement was quick to rule it an accident and move on but the family is sure this is a case of murder being covered up. [11] Some of the apparent lapses in coverage were found to result from camera systems that were not synchronized with one another. The Johnsons hoped for a coroners inquest, which would begin the process ofreclassifying the cause of Kendrick Johnsons death as non-accidental and reopening the investigation. In 2015, the Johnsons filed a $100 million civil lawsuit against 38 people, including three of their sons classmates, the school, the local crime lab, state and federal officials, five agents of the GBI, an FBI agent, and more. Idk why but this case in particular seems to bring out the worst in a lot of true crime podcast hosts. [11] An autopsy by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) stated that Johnson had died from positional asphyxia,[12] and the case was ruled an accidental death by the Lowndes County investigators. It's just like,'shut this family up,' sending them on their way, but what they didn't realize is the Johnson family is not going anywhere. On October 31, 2013, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia announced that his office would open a formal review into Johnson's death. We have a good picture of him and a pretty good description. When the judge in that case delayed a decision, pending the outcome of the U.S. Attorney's review, the family demanded that the governor of Georgia immediately authorize the inquiry instead. Kendrick Johnson: Unsolved Crime or Tragic Accident. On May 8, 2013, a judge granted Kendrick Johnsons body be exhumed. Kendrick Johnson (Part 1) Crime Weekly. Authorities say they are working to verify an audio recording of someone admitting to Kendrick Johnson's death. [14] On October 31, 2013, U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore announced that his office would open a formal review into Johnson's death. Investigators did not take the hoodie and orange and black gym shoes into evidence. R.I.P Kendrick Johnson Facebook PageKendrick Johnsons casket was unearthed for a second time for a third autopsy. I would be suspicious too, if I were Kendricks parents, that there may be some kind of cover up occurring because, lets face it, who has ever heard of someone dying in a rolled up gym mat? The suit alleged that Johnson "was violently assaulted, severely injured, suffered great physical pain and mental anguish, and subjected to insult and loss of life" on January 10, 2013. In 2015, the Johnson family filed a wrongful death suit against brothers Brian and Branden Bell, and another peer, Ryan Hall, who they allege are responsible for Kendrick Johnsons death. Now, the sheriffs have enough evidence in hand to perhaps allow them to solve this mystery once and for all. The funeral home said that it received the body without organs which it replaced with paper or sawdust as is common practice while embalming. News of the re-openedinvestigation was welcomed by Johnsons family. NY Daily News/Valdosta/Lowndes Regional Crime Labratory via CNNKendrick Johnsons body rolled up inside the gym mat with his shoes behind his knees. This station is part of Cox Media Group Television. [31] They were subsequently sued for more than $850,000 in attorney fees[32] and $1,000,000 in defamation damages. Nobody wants Kendrick to get justice. [17], Johnson's family requested that his body be exhumed for a second time and was granted permission by Valdosta city officials. Lowndes County Sheriffs Office reopened Kendricks case last March. R.I.P Kendrick Johnson FacebookOne of the coroners reports on Kendrick Johnsons autopsy. And now, authorities say they have an audio recording of someone admitting to Johnson's death. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. Despite these resignations, the Department of Justice investigation continued. Speculation and outrageous theories always run wild and it takes away from the victims story. Wikimedia CommonsSeventeen-year-old Kendrick Johnsons body was inexplicably found upside-down in a rolled-up gym mat in 2013. Paulk, who was not part of the sheriffs office at the time of Johnsons death, requested the evidence gathered during the federal probe in April 2019 as part of his re-examination of the case, but federal investigators initially declined his request. He was found rolled up in a gym mat at Lowndes High School the next day. Justice denied. Download the FOX 5 Atlanta appfor breaking news and weather alerts. But his parents would later maintain that his size versus the size of the mat alone was enough to debunk the investigators case. Listen Now Episode Info I do find it disturbing and unethical that this investigation seemed to turn into a witch hunt after the FBI told the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia that they had found nothing criminal, and they consequently were closing the case, Paulk wrote in the synopsis. Did you encounter any technical issues? On January 11, 2013, the body of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson was found in the most unusual of circumstances: upside-down and rolled up in a school gym mat. We have buried kj 3 times and it felt like 3 funerals and i lost him 3 times.. The Valdosta County Sheriff offered half a million dollars of his own money in response to the negative outcry about a recent report released . A recordingthat reportedly contains an emotional confession of an individual who may have been involved in the suspicious 2013 death of teenagerKendrick Johnsonin Georgiais now being vetted by authorities, police said this week. But still an accident? Thomas wondered. Required fields are marked *. Kendrick Johnsons case closed after authorities say no crime found, Reports: 3 children dead, 2 wounded in attack at Texas home, Kellyanne Conway, George Conway To Divorce After Decadeslong Marriage: Report, School punished teen girl for working out in sports bra in 100-degree Texas heat, ACLU says, U.S. court won't require FAA to make airplane seat size, spacing rules, 'Extremely dangerous': Spike in illegal crossings at Canada-Vermont border has feds sounding alarm, SoCal in for cool start to weekend, butlight showers make brief return, Scam alert: arrest warrant calls are fake, sheriff's office says, Heidi Klum's husband thinks the couple's dogs might have been poisoned. [5], Johnson's family filed a $100 million civil lawsuit against 38 individuals, stating that his death was a murder and that the respondents were participants in a conspiracy to cover up the homicide, which they claimed involved two sons of an FBI agent. That initial investigation concluded that Johnson accidentally slipped into the center of the mat while reaching for a shoe and got stuck. As a result of this new evidence, Matthew Moore, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announced a formal review of the case. Attorneys in Atlanta describe widespread delays and disruptions to other cases as the prosecution of Young Thug . Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more! Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. Kendrick was found dead in a gym mat in 2013. Tweet. However, these things really happen in the world. I do not, he replied. And potentially missing videotape? Do not believe anything that this sheriffs department tells you, Kenneth Johnson said. Coleman called for the individuals immediate arrest. "If it's a hoax, it's a very, very cruel hoax to do to Mrs. Johnson," he said. Kendrick Johnson was black and the Lowndes County Sheriff, Chris Prines, and his investigators were all white. The Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI) claimed that when the body was sent to the funeral home after the first autopsy, Johnsons organs had been put back inside the body. Johnsons mother told Channel 2s Tony Thomas that shes not surprised by the findings. Johnsons parents were suspicious of the investigation from the beginning. Investigators concluded he died in a freak accident. An autopsy conducted by a pathologist who was hired by Johnsons family determined that the cause of death was unexplained, apparent non-accidental, blunt-force trauma to the neck. August 17, 2021. The body was discovered by fellow students who had climbed up to the top of a cluster of mats, each of which stood nearly 6 feet (1.8m) tall and 3 feet (0.91m) wide. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. On January 11, 2013, the body of Kendrick Johnson (October 10, 1995 January 10, 2013) was discovered inside a vertical rolled-up mat in the gymnasium of Lowndes High School in Valdosta, Georgia, United States, where he was a student. Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson stand next to a banner on their SUV showing their late son, Kendrick Johnson, on Dec. 13, 2013, in Valdosta, Ga. On that tape, you very clearly hear what appears to be a caucasian young male admitting very tearful, very fearful and stating twice that he knows that hes going to get caught,, , a spokesperson for the Johnson family, told, . In June 2016, the Department of Justice announced no charges would be filed against anyone in relation to Kendrick Johnsons death, considering there was insufficient evidence to support federal criminal charges.. Though Paulk said the investigation may take up to six months, both he and the Johnson family are optimistic that justice will finally be served. The lawsuit alleged that the FBI agent ordered his two sons and a classmate to attack Johnson, that his death was a murder, and that the respondents engaged in a conspiracy to cover up the homicide. The late teen's parents, Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson, filed the lawsuit in January, claiming their son was the victim of foul play. The parents asserted that the sons of the FBI agent killed Johnson and used their connections to cover up the investigation. He was just in his socks. These issues dont mean that someone will kill someone else, however. The cameras which faced the mats were unfocussed and skipped around. His family and friends described him as a sweet and quiet boy. As he was upside down, blood would have rushed to Johnsons head and he eventually would have begun to bleed from his facial orifices. Investigators, who suspected hed become trapped after attempting to grab a pair of sneakers, ruled his deatha freak accident. Indeed, when the mat was first unrolled, Johnson did have one arm stretched above his head and the other down around his waist as though struggling for his shoe. This time, the autopsy revealed that Kendrick Johnson had suffered hemorrhaging on the right side of his neck, which meant that he likely died from blunt force trauma. Parents' lawsuit in Georgia gym mat death is dismissed.

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