A second local investigation into the 2013 death of Kendrick Johnson, the Georgia teenager who was found dead in a rolled-up gym mat, has been closed with no charges filed, according to a report . Not a big deal, perhaps, except, Another student had an issue with Kendrick and had threatened him several times over a girlfriend. The dead teens mother, Jaqueline Johnson, told the TV station she is not surprised by the sheriffs findings. There are no suspects because we havent made a determination as to whether or not this was murder, Paulk added. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! In the latest report, Paulk dispelled rumors that Johnson and the Bell brothers had any contact on the day Johnson died. This is how you roll in Valdosta, the dead teens mother, Jaqueline Johnson, said of the Lowndes County Sheriffs new findings. [Featured image: Kendrick Johnson/Contributed], Life Without Parole: Convicted Kidnappers of Slain Toddler Kamille McKinney Sentenced, Squatter Charged With Murder of Missing Teen Farmer Dylan Rounds, Teen Who Rapped About Shooting Rival Gang Member in Back Charged with Murder. After extensive investigation into this tragic event, federal investigators determined that there is insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that someone or some group of people willfully violated Kendrick Johnsons civil rights or committed any other prosecutable federal crime, it said in a statement. NY Daily News/Valdosta/Lowndes Regional Crime Labratory via CNNKendrick Johnsons body rolled up inside the gym mat with his shoes behind his knees. Johnson was the main "sniper" for the 103 gang, Seely said. Listen, Im a high school teacher. But Johnsons parents felt that his death was not being taken seriously, in part because of his race, or because a larger cover-up was at play. We have buried kj 3 times and it felt like 3 funerals and i lost him 3 times.. Ebony.com described the murder of Johnson to have been at the hands of two white brothers, though they did not include names. This is a very unusual accident. Learn about careers at Cox Media Group. [12][16] The funeral home that processed the body following the FBI's autopsy stated that they never received Johnson's internal organs from the coroner; the organs were said to have been "destroyed through natural process" and "discarded by the prosector before the body was sent back to Valdosta," according to the funeral home owner. R.I.P Kendrick Johnson Facebook PageKendrick Johnsons casket was unearthed for a second time for a third autopsy. 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. Johnsons family has long-suspected the teen was killed by classmates and theorized that their parents conspired with school and law enforcement officials to cover up hisdeath. But investigators quickly closed their case on the theory that Johnson had simply fallen into the mat while reaching for one of his sneakers. [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. 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. Published on February 1, 2022 08:45 AM. Kendrick Johnson's family and several friends gathered and held a balloon . [15], Johnson's family filed a legal action to open a coroner's inquest into his death. 2023 FOX Television Stations, Kendrick Johnson with his mother and father, Kenneth and Jackie Johnson. 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. . 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. "[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. [11] Some of the apparent lapses in coverage were found to result from camera systems that were not synchronized with one another. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. As he was upside down, blood would have rushed to Johnsons head and he eventually would have begun to bleed from his facial orifices. The Johnsons were also sure that their sons body had been moved, which was corroborated by Lowndes County Coroner, Bill Watson. The group is. We already knew that nothing was going to be done on your watch. [6] That lawsuit was subsequently withdrawn. Video shows Johnson walking into and then through the gym on January 10, 2013. According to Paulk, it was Kendrick Johnson's mother, Jackie Johnson, who obtained the recording and turned it in to investigators. Kendrick Johnsons casket was unearthed for a second time for a third autopsy. When rolled up, the mat left a 14-inch hole in diameter in the center. You're in for a treat! The video was streamed by Morant to his Instagram page, and it was not archived once he stopped the stream. Essential, you asphyxiate (either by suffocation or lack of oxygen) due to the position of your bodya position in which you cant get yourself out. Given the slender opening in the gym mat, this is certainly plausible, even though Kendrick was exceptionally physically fit. "[23], In August 2014, a $5 million lawsuit against Ebony magazine was filed, after the magazine published a series of articles naming two students as possible suspects in Johnson's death. 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. In 2013, the 17-year-olds body was found upside down inside a rolled-up gym mat at a Georgia high school; he'd suffocated to death. [12] Three students at Lowndes High School told investigators that it was common for some students to store their shoes behind or under the rolled up mats, Johnson was not wearing shoes when he was found. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! However, the coroner said these organs were not sent to the funeral home because they were too decomposed and were instead disposed of beforehand. The latest report addresses several controversial topics at the center of Johnsons death, including the teens autopsy, where his body was found, and cameras located at Lowndes High School. CNN A second local investigation into the 2013 death of Kendrick Johnson, the Georgia teenager who was found dead in a rolled-up gym mat, has been closed with no charges filed, according to. The Grizzlies played in Denver on Friday night and are scheduled to fly to Los Angeles on Saturday . On June 22, 2018, Johnson's body was exhumed.[19]. [23] It alleged that Johnson was attacked on a bus trip 14 months prior to his death. But it is what it is.. Earlier in March, Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk announced that officials were reopening the investigation and reevaluating the previously-sealed evidence. That students father is a retired FBI agent. But inconsistencies in official reports on the condition of Kendricks body and other discrepancies led the family and community to question the official cause of his death. Paulk wrote that he reviewed 17 boxes of files from the FBI, Department of Justice, and local authorities while revisiting this case. You didnt find nothing in 17 boxes? KENDRICK JOHNSON: SHERIFF SAYS INVESTIGATION INTO GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE'S DEATH A 'WITCH HUNT' The investigative synopsis states classmates found Johnson. 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, . The Johnsons have a GoFundMe account open to hire a private investigator to look into what they say is new evidence. Thing is, he wasnt just found dead. Regardless, the organs were lost and could not be tested during the second autopsy, which further aroused suspicions in Johnsons parents that this was a cover-up. Investigators concluded he died in a freak accident. We have buried kj 3 times and it felt like 3 funerals and i lost him 3 times.. Johnsons mother told Channel 2s Tony Thomas that shes not surprised by the findings. "[26] After Moore resigned in 2015,[27] the case was transferred to the Northern District of Ohio under U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach. Sheriff says recording thought to show proof Kendrick Johnson was murdered, was a cruel hoax His family says despite the setback, they are not giving up hope. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Meet The Damselfly, Your New Favorite Insect, Man Who Had Part Of His Brain Removed To Cure Him Of Seizures Says He No Longer Feels Fear, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. LeBron James is still in the closet, but he will join Green and Perkins as an "America First" hoopster when Bronny James is toiling in a faraway foreign league.MAGA NBA players are annoyed that foreigners are taking over a . Listen Now Episode Info The Georgia Bureau of Investigation previously determined Johnsons death was accidental despite two independent autopsies finding the teen died of non-accidental blunt force trauma. 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. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Investigators tested the blood which revealed that it did not belong to Kendrick Johnson. Why The Accidental Death Of Kendrick Johnson Remains Suspicious To This Day. We know that.. Eight years ago, classmates at Lowndes High School in Valdosta found 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson's body inside an upright mat. 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. "[11], Lt. Stryde Jones, who headed up the investigation for the Lowndes County Sheriff's Office, stated: "We never had credible information that indicated this was anything other than an accident. Looking for interesting and mysterious true crime documentaries? "Nobody really cares, Jackie Johnson, the teenagers mother, WAGA-TV. You do not believe there was anything criminal? Thomas asked Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk. The mat in which Johnson was found was around six feet tall. The three teens were classmates. Furthermore, a whole hour of footage from the gym was missing, right at the time which would have shed light on what happened that day. Furthermore, Johnsons parents argued, if this was an accident, how could no one have heard Kendrick call for help in a high school of over 3,000 students? VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) - Kendrick Johnson's family is full of hope after they brought a new recording to light with a possible confession to law enforcement. The YSL Case Is Stretching Fulton County's Justice System to Its Breaking Point. You didnt find nothing in 17 boxes? Parents' lawsuit in Georgia gym mat death is dismissed. Law enforcement has ruled Kendrick's death an . Attorneys for the Johnson family expressed fears that the camera footage was edited as part of a cover-up. [14] On October 31, 2013, U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore announced that his office would open a formal review into Johnson's death. The brothers father,Rick Bell, was an FBI special agent who ultimately resignedafter his home was raided and searched for evidence, according to NBC. "[35][36], On March 10, 2021, the case was officially reopened. [30] After the Justice Department's motion was denied, Johnson's parents dismissed their own wrongful death lawsuit, saying that they hoped to refile it after the conclusion of the federal investigation. The individual in question could face extortion charges if the recording is phony,Paulk said. For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the Crime Stories with Nancy Grace podcast. [29], In November 2015, the Department of Justice filed a motion in the civil case to intervene and stay the case. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. The sheriff released a 16-page summary of his investigation on Wednesday including pictures from the Lowndes County gym. 2:24 PM EST, Thu January 27, 2022, Justice Dept. For a brilliantly done docuseries on Kendrick Johnson, watch Ashes to Ashs vlogcast! [2][13], After the opinion of the private pathologist was released, Johnson's family stated that they believed Johnson had been murdered. In 2015, the Johnson familyfiled a wrongful death lawsuit against siblings Brian and Branden Bell, and another student, Ryan Hall, who they have said they suspect are to blame in the teenager'sdeath. "[18] The Johnson family subsequently filed a civil lawsuit against the funeral home, seeking monetary damages. MATTIE'S CALL: A 9-month-old baby girl was reported missing from the Ellenwood area with a man police say was diagnosed with a mental illness. All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. Tweet. His mother posted on her Facebook: No mother or father should ever have to bury their child under these circumstances. From there until now, we feel like this has been a cover-up at a very high level. He was never shown within or leaving the gym and indeed, he never did show up for his following classes. 2023 Cable News Network. Georgia Judge Richard Porter ordered the Johnsons and their attorney to pay more than $292,000 in legal fees to the defendants, accusing them of fabricating evidence to support their claims. In June 2018, Kendrick Johnsons body was exhumed for a second time and a third autopsy was performed. Johnson's family has rejected officials' determination that Johnson's death was accidental and has accused brothers Brian and Branden Bell of murdering Johnson. A number of community activists have also spoken out in favor of the forthcoming probe into the Georgia teens death. In the recently-released report, Paulk scrutinized an amended report that was released two years after the Office of Armed Forces Medical Examiner found in August 2014 that Johnson died of positional asphyxia and listed his death as accidental. 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. The recording hasnt yet been made public. [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. Investigators ruled it an accident but his family and other people nationwide believe he was murdered. The suit also alleged that school officials failed to "properly monitor the activities of students throughout all areas" of the campus and to "maintain a properly functioning video surveillance system. Im going through everything myself, Paulk said. Thats the craziest lie you could have told, Johnson said of Paulks probe. The next day, a teacher found his body inside one of the rolled-up wrestling mats. Then, read about the horrifying murder of Emmett Till. Johnsons family, however, said they areconfident the 25-second audio clip is authentic and that it could lead to criminal charges in the case. [7][8][9][10], On January 11, 2013, the body of Kendrick Johnson was discovered in the gymnasium of Lowndes High School in Valdosta, Georgia, found headfirst in the center of a vertical rolled-up wrestling mat. Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson stand next to a banner on their SUV showing their late son Kendrick, in Valdosta, Ga., in December 2013. Adding to the confusion is the fact that in October 2013, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation told CBS thatJohnsons organs were returned to his body following the autopsy, as per protocol. "Im treating it like its a brand new case," Paulk said, according to the newspaper. No further information was readily provided by law enforcement. Indeed, in 2013, racism in Valdosta, Georgia, was still very much alive. 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. Though it was quickly ruled an accidental death, Kendrick's family thought something was wrong. Johnsons parents finally believed that their sons death was not being taken seriously because of his race. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. [39] He further stated that two brothers, named in previous legal actions by the Johnsons, are not suspects. The suit alleges the boys family conspired with former Lowndes County Sheriff Chris Prine and county school officials to cover up the death. If authentic, the audio maybe one of the first significant clues to emerge since the cases reopening earlier this month by the Lowndes County Sheriffs Office. VALDOSTA, Ga. The sheriff at the center of the Kendrick Johnson death case says his department has gone through the evidence extensively and found no crime. [5] Crump's application to practice law in Georgia representing Johnson's parents was not ruled on, and he withdrew from representing the family and is no longer participating in the case. Since 17 year old Kendrick Johnson was found dead, in a rolled up gym mat, the question has remained; was this a tragic accident, or a well orchestrated and quickly hidden murder. Possible Audio Confession In Kendrick Johnson's Death Investigated. 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. Kendrick Johnson was a 17-year-old student at Lowndes County High School. Unsatisfied with the result of the investigation, they hired an independent autopsy conducted by William R. Anderson with Forensic Dimensions in Heathrow, Florida, on June 15, 2013. In 2013, Johnsons body was found rolled up in a mat inside a Valdosta-area high school gymnasium. 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. 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. A second local investigation into the 2013 death of Kendrick Johnson, the Georgia teenager who was found dead in a rolled-up gym mat, has been closed with no charges filed, according to a report released by Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. As far as the feds were concerned, the case was officially and finally closed. Download the FOX 5 Atlanta appfor breaking news and weather alerts. Johnsons parents have said they think their son was killed. Nobody wants Kendrick to get justice. 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 Lowndes .