Possible new evidence presented in Kendrick Johnson case - WALB WALB has . TCR: Our documentary exposes a lot of the history surrounding the FBI and the treatmentof African Americans in this country by criminal justice organizations. OPINION: Kendrick Johnson case solved but conspiracies never die - ajc I do believe he was found with his organs intact; taken out during the first autopsy. 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. Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found dead in 2013, but his family says in the documentary they will continue to fight for justice because his "life mattered." Kenneth Johnson and Jacquelyn. Local and state investigators determined the death was an. He said an FBI investigation also found that there was no cover-up or conspiracy. Then, looking into the story and seeing how truly unbelievable it was, how it had been almostcompletely dropped by the media, and how nobody seemed to care about it, after speaking withthe family and getting their permission we decided that what I did with the Mike Brown casereally needed to be done for Kendricks case. I was young and stupid. TCR: Do you consider yourself a whistleblower in exposing the failures of law enforcementin this investigation? Hell never have to pay. JACKSONVILLE, Fla A new piece of potential evidence has been brought to authorities in the high-profile death of a Valdosta teen. The family said they believe it is a confession of the killer. Joined by Coleman, they presented the audio recording to Ashley Paulk, Lowndes County sheriff. And, for me, it really took the air out of my balloon when it came to law enforcement in general. About See All. "There's no conspiracy theories in the film," he tells PEOPLE. Aside from that,people know me. This account was about 21 hours after he was last seen alive. RELATED: Lowndes County reopens Kendrick Johnson case, teen whose body was found rolled up in gym mat. "The whole point is I don't know what happened, but somebody there does," he says. The paragraph starts with: On January 11, 2013 at 10:32 am. This has fueled endless, and wild, speculation. "After the Mike Brown case, I decided to do a case that I felt needed this [investigative] treatment the most, and KJ's family was down there in Georgia in 2017 when we first started talking about this," he says. He added the feds didnt clear the Bells, they just couldnt prove a crime occurred. : No charges in Kendrick Johnson death, nr Blackwell Kendrick Johnson_00003415.jpg. What kind ofresponse are you hoping for by revealing that history? Most people in Hollywood, especially white people, hadnt heard about KJs story and we had a lot of doors closed because of that fact. appreciated. It really showed how the media only cares if the case is famous or not. And thats because the region has been bred on this type of gruesomeness. Much of the public and media have agreeably nodded along with that notion. Copyright 2019 WALB. He vowed to review the controversial case. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Why would you have the investigators work like that unless you really dont care? 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. The Johnson family spokesperson said the audio was recorded secretly and sold to the family, by who they describe as an alleged family member, for $1,000. Eventually, after a November 2020 visit by the Johnson family with federal investigators, that request was granted and the Justice Department turned over its investigative material to the sheriffs office. Using state evidence gathered from a four-year undercover investigation, as well as interviews with Mitch Credle, a homicide detective assigned to the initial 2013 federal criminal civil rights investigation launched by the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Middle District of Georgia, the film reveals a case riddled with errors, and hampered by conspiracy and obstruction in law enforcement that included the FBI. Almost a decade after Georgia investigators concluded 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson's death in his school's gymnasium was a freak accident, authorities have reopened the case and are looking into potential new evidence that includes a possible recorded confession. A local investigation into the death of a 17-year-old Georgia student who was found dead in 2013 in a rolled-up gym mat has been closed with no charges filed. What I do in the film is show things that people dont want to talk about that we forgot about that have been pushed under the rug because its easier for these southern white communities to pretend that it didnt happen than to have to change. "The most significant item that was added appears to be a report from the South Georgia Medical Center Mobile Healthcare report that states they saw a bruise on the right side of the jaw.". The film is narrated by actress Jenifer Lewis, whose mellifluous and recognizable voice is known to fans of Black-ish.. On Jan. 10, 2013, when Kendrick didn't return home from school, his mom, Jacquelyn Johnson, wasn't worried at first. The Lowndes County Sheriff's Office reopened the case in March. I have insights into many cases, things that were unknown until I discovered them. They await the right person, theres enough strong evidence to keep a man busy producing great things for a very long time. 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. Like when you say that shouldnt have happened to Kendrick, youre exactly right. It took a while to get the 17 boxes of files. A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office for Middle Georgia said in a statement: "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, which handled the matter. Coleman says he is cautiously optimistic about the tape and the reopening of the investigation. There are few starker example than Kendrick Johnson, an African American teenager found dead inside a rolled-up gym mat at his high school gymnasium in 2013. The files included material from the Justice Department, the FBI, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. attorneys office for Middle Georgiaand several other law enforcement agencies. The forensic pathologist not only determined the cause of death to be from non-accidental blunt force trauma, but also discovered that organs were missing from his body. Paulk, the sheriff, could not immediately be reached for a response Thursday. They would have never raided his house if (the Bells) had nothing to do with it, Mr. Johnson said. Any person who looks at this case objectively would know it would be impossible to conceal any evidence due to the involvement of so many agencies and investigators, Paulk wrote of the accusations that a cabal of law enforcement covered up the killing of the 17-year-old Lowndes High School. Johnsons body underwent three autopsies, including one at the familys request. POLLOCK:The reason I went down the FBI rabbit hole was because once we concluded that the FBI was the governing body of this cover-up, then I needed to show that this didnt happen in a bubble. Though they were initially denied, federal officials finally handed over 17 boxes of materials on the case to them last week, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Discovery Company. He contends the files would say the familys autopsy was the most accurate and that Rick Bell was forced to leave the FBI. Its deep programming. Eight years after the body of Kendrick Johnson was found in a rolled-up gym mat at a high school in Georgia, the Lowndes County Sheriffs Office has announced it is reopening the case after authorities initially ruled the 17-year-olds cause of death as accidental. It hasnt stopped, Im working on several cases at all times and continue having success. Kenneth Johnson said at a news conference that he believes his son's death is being covered up. He wrote that a student was alleged to have left the school about an hour before Johnson was last seen alive for a wrestling tournament. Kendrick Johnson Case Reopened By Sheriff's Office, Possible Confession On an interview with MSNBC host Joy Reid, Lewis summed up the case, saying, Imagine being the mother of this child, 17 years old, knowing somebody, probably rich and white, is walking around with his organs. I think of myself and others that I know who have done stupid or silly things that almost ended their lives. According to Lt. Stryde Jones, the athletic shoes he is wearing in this photo are the ones he was. Why has this Georgia man been behind bars for 10 years awaiting trial? I will fight as long as I have to, to uncover what happened to Kendrick Johnson.. The US Attorneys Office for the Northern District of Ohio declined to comment. State and local law enforcement officials ruled the death an accidental asphyxiation, saying Johnson died after he climbed into a rolled-up mat to retrieve his sneakers. His body was discovered the next morning when a class entered the gym and sat on the bleachers next to the mats, the report says. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. This is the first time I read about blunt force trauma. The Lowndes County Sheriffs Office is currently working to authenticate the recording and the voice on it. His case was closed almost five years ago after federal investigators determined there was 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, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. -tongue bitten-large amounts of unexplained blood-blood from nose and mouth-vomiting-bruising on neck Kendrick Johnson's death is consistent with some type of homicidal asphyxiation. Today we delivered what we have authenticated, make sure that is extremely clear. Show more 6:12 Missing video in teen gym-mat death? So, theres none of that in my movie because those are all lies. Months after his death, Lowndes County Sheriffs Office investigators ruled it was an accident and closed the case. I'm breaking into pieces because I know it's my child.". POLLOCK: Its worse than avoidance. After three years of investigation, the feds dropped the case saying they could not prove a crime occurred. Before his death, Johnson had gotten into an altercation with the student's brother. And I feel that this is emblematic of what the government does when they get too close to the truth of a case like this: they just back down. They gave them an impossible task and made it impossible for him to do his job.
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