Dr. William R. Anderson wrote in his June 2013 report that Kendrick suffered blunt force trauma, right neck, involving right mandible, and soft tissues, including the area of the carotid body, consistent with inflicted injury. The second independent autopsy, that Dr. Anderson also performed, yielded the same findings with the report explicitly stating that their findings were not consistent with positional asphyxia, which was Georgia officials final determination. [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. For 11 of my 23 years, I worked cold cases. In that autopsy, Anderson told the Johnsons he'd found evidence that Kendrick died as the result of a blow to the neck, and not accidental asphyxia after slipping into a rolled gym mat at school as investigators in Georgia had said. Despite this, the Department of Justice closed the investigation in June 2016, citing insufficient evidence. Two entities had custody of Kendrick Johnson's body after his death -- the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which conducted the first autopsy in January; and the Harrington Funeral Home in Valdosta, which handled the teen's embalming and burial. The death of 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson at the gymnasium of Lowndes High School in Valdosta, in the U.S. on January 11, 2013, was as bizarre as the subsequent findings. As he was upside down, blood would have rushed to Johnsons head and he eventually would have begun to bleed from his facial orifices. A surveillance still shows Kendrick (front) in his high schools gym before his disappearance [Image: Lowndes County Public Schools]Kendrick vanished at Lowndes High School around 1:20 p.m. on January 10, 2013. This finding further increased the confidence of doubters that this death was an accident. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. The parents asserted that the sons of the FBI agent killed Johnson and used their connections to cover up the investigation. What made me think that everything was a cover-upwas that first meeting with the medical examiner, Mitch Credle said. Students had also told police that it was common for them to leave their belongings in the mats when they didnt want to pay for a locker. Then without parent consent, a surgeon at the hospital harvested her organs . In 2007, Bryant allegedly revealed to. On June 22, 2018, Johnson's body was exhumed.[19]. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. A private pathologist was hired to carry out a second autopsy. His family and friends described him as a sweet and quiet boy. But the Justice Department found insufficient evidence to support an investigation. Pollock believed the evidence was so crucial that he flew to Georgia to show Kendricks parents. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Wrongful death, Kendrick Johnson's family vs. Lowndes County Board of Education and school officials. The body of Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found Jan. 11 in South Georgia. The mysterious death of Kendrick Johnson was initially ruled an accident by law enforcement, but his family was not convinced. Brian had told local media in numerous interviews that he had not seen Kendrick on the day he vanished. Lowndes County police said they believed Kendrick crawled into the mat to retrieve his shoes, became stuck, and continued to burrow into the mat until he became completely trapped and died. Russ Bynum/AP. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, Johnson's parents hope the outcome would be to change the manner of death listed on his death certificate from accidental to homicide -- paving the way to reopen a criminal investigation. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. The private pathologist presented a four-page report of his findings Aug. 15 saying he detected hemorrhaging on the right side of Johnson's neck. Watson said he reviewed the second autopsy report on Johnson, but found it vague and lacking the specifics of the GBI's findings. An inquest would present the evidence in Johnson's death in a public hearing, much like a trial. [2], Authorities hypothesized that Johnson had fallen into the mat while looking for a shoe and died after being unable to get out. He writes, in part: "his internal organs were destroyed through natural process and henceforth were discarded before the body was sent back to Valdosta.". October 11, 2013 / 11:31 AM Now, the sheriffs have enough evidence in hand to perhaps allow them to solve this mystery once and for all. Kenneth also said lacerations and bruising to his sons face made him think Kendrick was in some sort of fight. I Googled stuff, he said. Found in a rolled-up gym mat, officials at Lowndes County High School in south Georgia concluded the athlete had been reaching for his sneaker when he fell headfirst into the mats. A hoodie and a pair of orange and black gym shoes were also found lying on the floor of the gym, as well as traces of blood on the wall nearby. 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 body of Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found Jan. 11 in south Georgia. Attorneys for the Johnson family expressed fears that the camera footage was edited as part of a cover-up. But a judge agreed in May to exhume the body, and Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson hired Dr. William R. Anderson to provide a second opinion. They believed that the Sheriffs Department wastoo quick to rule out foul play as a cause for Johnsons death, considering that within 24 hours of finding Kendrick Johnsons body, they concluded that it was an accident. The body of Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found Jan. 11 in South Georgia. That's what happened in Johnson's case, she said. It does appear, however, that their quest for answers has only led to more questions. "I'm terribly sorry for the family," Watson said. 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. In addition to the photos in the FBI report, the document also included a ledger that specifically said Kendrick and Brian were standing next to each other in the hallway the morning Kendrick died. All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. Why The Accidental Death Of Kendrick Johnson Remains Suspicious To This Day. I really dont. [26] All local Superior Court judges recused themselves from presiding over the case, preventing the lawsuit from being filed and heard in Lowndes County, citing their close proximity to the accused. [40], "Kendrick Johnson" redirects here. [29], In November 2015, the Department of Justice filed a motion in the civil case to intervene and stay the case. NY Daily News/Valdosta/Lowndes Regional Crime Labratory via CNN. All rights reserved. 1. Then, read about the horrifying murder of Emmett Till. The fact that Brian didnt see KJ was a huge thing that they used for years against the Johnson family.. Wikimedia CommonsSeventeen-year-old Kendrick Johnsons body was inexplicably found upside-down in a rolled-up gym mat in 2013. Investigators did not take the hoodie and orange and black gym shoes into evidence. [31] They were subsequently sued for more than $850,000 in attorney fees[32] and $1,000,000 in defamation damages. Kendrick Johnsons body rolled up inside the gym mat with his shoes behind his knees. 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=1143606101. [2] That left a void, which the funeral home filled. 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. [17] A spokesperson for the Secretary of State said that the investigation found that the funeral home "didn't violate any rules. One of the coroners reports on Kendrick Johnsons autopsy. 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. Kendricks photos drew wide comparisons to Emmett Till, a 14-year-old Black boy from Chicago who was murdered in 1955 in Money, Mississippi, after a 21-year-old white woman named Carolyn Bryant accused him of making ugly remarks and whistling at her. But Johnson's family believes he was killed and has been pressuring authorities into taking a second look at the case. In addition to revisiting some of the more troubling aspects of the investigation into Kendricks suspicious death including the teens missing organs and unidentified blood splatter found near his body the documentary presents a damning piece of evidence that was never before made public: Surveillance stills showing the primary person of interest standing next to Kendrick before he vanished contradicting claims that he did not see Kendrick the day he vanished on campus. He said Kendrick Johnson's brain, heart and tongue were among the missing organs. Legal Statement. When organs are missing, such as in cases involving organ donors, space inside the body cavity often is filled with an absorbent, preservative powder, Fountain said. [Featured image: Nikkolas Smith/Millennial PR], North Carolina Cop, Wife Found Shot Dead in Fayetteville Home, We Have Zero Leads: $80,000 Reward Offered for Information Leading to Man Who Gunned Down Texas Family, Missing: 18-Year-Old Mom Takes Toddler Son From Dads During Supervised Visit. Johnson's organs appeared to be missing from his body, according to an autopsy. [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. His son, 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson, was dead. An all-white jury acquitted Bryants husband and brother-in-law within an hour. Credle, a veteran homicide detective from Washington, D.C., is referring to his work investigating the death of Kendrick Johnson, a 17-year-old boy who was found dead in a rolled-up wrestling mat at his Valdosta, Georgia, high school on January 11, 2013. Market data provided by Factset. The pathologist concluded his death was not an accident. His mother posted on her Facebook: No mother or father should ever have to bury their child under these circumstances. "[26] After Moore resigned in 2015,[27] the case was transferred to the Northern District of Ohio under U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach. But investigators quickly closed their case on the theory that Johnson had simply fallen into the mat while reaching for one of his sneakers. "Those organs were in the body when we sent it back to the funeral home," said Lang, who added that the GBI stands by the conclusions of its autopsy that found no foul play involved. "[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. Indeed, in 2013, racism in Valdosta, Georgia, was still very much alive. More migrants expected Monday as Lightfoot pleads with Texas governor, EXCLUSIVE: Mayor Lightfoot opens up about election defeat, Crews to begin removing tree older than Chicago at Lincoln Park Zoo, JPMorgan Chase to take over most assets of First Republic Bank, At least 27 shot, 5 fatally, in Chicago weekend shootings: police, Toddler dies after being shot inside Chicago home last week: officials, Teen boy shot to death on South Side ID'd: officials, NFL player's 2-year-old daughter drowns in swimming pool, Authorities continue search for Texas man suspected of killing 5, NW Side restaurant burglarized 4 times in 5 weeks, owners say: VIDEO, Chicago family escapes Sudan as deadly fighting rages on, Paying more despite good credit? Credle was called in after several local authorities recused themselves from the case which many believe was due to the primary persons of interest being the sons of an FBI agent. Some cases are left undetermined for years.. The Sheriffs Department asserted that Johnson must have accidentally fallen into the center of the mat while reaching for a sneaker, which he had stored there so as not to have to pay for a locker. The teenager's family announced Thursday that the Florida lawyer who helped push for a criminal prosecution in the shooting of Trayvon Martin has joined efforts to reopen an investigation into Johnson's death. Kendrick Johnson In Savannah, Georgia 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson's body was uncovered January 11, 2013, inside of a rolled up wrestling mat . Images from the scene show Johnson lying in a pool of blood. [14] The governor's office released a statement indicating that they would await the report of the U.S. He also said standard embalming practice is to fill empty space in body cavities with material such as sawdust or cotton. They also reported that the blood had likely been there for a long time. "[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. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. [21] The area where Johnson's body was discovered, where the gym mats were stored, was outside the range of all of the surveillance cameras. In January of 2013, Kenneth Johnson got a call no parent ever wants to get. Time stamps between some separate camera systems differed by as much as twenty minutes for the same time period, giving the impression of a gap for portions of the footage where no gap existed. But Johnson's family believes he was killed and has been pressuring authorities into taking a second look at the case. [23] It alleged that Johnson was attacked on a bus trip 14 months prior to his death. Johnsons shoulders measured 19 across and he was five feet, ten inches tall. [11] However, analysis of the camera systems by the Valdosta Daily Times purported to explain the anomalies, casting doubt on the theory of a cover-up. Ive never seen a doctor rule on a theory without being able to present facts to me, Credle told CrimeOnline, claiming the medical examiner kicked him out of her office when he questioned her about her findings. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. In their lawsuit, the parents of the accused boys assert that their sons were not involved in the death, are not considered suspects, and have been harassed as a result of the publication. UNDATED: Kendrick Johnson,17, was found dead inside his high school's gym. Body parts are missing, evidence is missing. (CBS/AP) SAVANNAH, Ga. - The parents of a Georgia teenager whose body was found inside a rolled-up wrestling mat at school said Thursday the fact that their son was recently found to be buried without his internal organs is a new reason to suspect signs of foul play were covered by investigators. 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 Sheriff's Office has announced it is reopening the case after . They were ultimately ordered by a judge to pay close to $300,000 worth of lawyers fees to those they had accused with no evidence. GBI spokeswoman Sherry Lang told CNN that after the autopsy, "the organs were placed in Johnson's . 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.. And they admit, they're struggling. The body of Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found Jan. 11 in south Georgia, and Lowndes County sheriff's investigators concluded that he died in a freak accident - falling headfirst into an upright mat and becoming trapped. Harrington Funeral Home in Valdosta, which handled Johnson's body, referred calls to attorney Roy Copeland. Attorney. "Those organs were in the body when we sent it back to the funeral home," said Lang, who added that the GBI stands by the conclusions of its autopsy that found no foul play involved. But the Justice Department found insufficient evidence to support an investigation. [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. [39] In January 2022, the second investigation was closed with no charges filed. "But I don't think raising all this Cain down here is going to bring closure to them. Two entities had custody of Kendrick Johnson's body after his death - the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which conducted the first autopsy in January; and the Harrington Funeral Home in. Similar to Kendricks mother, Tills mother, Mamie Till Mobley, wanted to call attention to what happened to her son, so she held an open-casket funeral and allowed Jet magazine to publish photographs of her childs disfigured and bloated corpse. But during a second autopsy, a private pathologist discovered Johnson's organs were missing and newspaper was used to replace them. In 2007, Bryant allegedly revealed to The Blood of Emmett Till author Timothy Tyson that she lied about the sexual harassment that prompted Tills murder. Johnson was a three-sport . School officials found Johnson's body in the gym after his parents reported him missing the night before. "This is a real-life murder mystery where these parents sent their child to school with a book bag and he was returned to them in a body bag," Crump said in a phone interview. An inquest would present the evidence in Johnson's death in a public hearing, much like a trial. "We just can't allow this to happen again and again and again.". Crump said the Johnson family's legal team plans to focus on getting the official manner of death in the case changed from accidental to homicide. Notably, the shoe located on top of the blood is spotless suggesting, in the view of the family and film producers, that the item was planted. Though surveillance cameras were located all over campus, the last footage of Kendrick shows him walking into the gym behind other students before going out of frame. On June 20, 2016, the Department of Justice announced that it would not be filing any criminal charges related to Johnson's death. But the Justice Department found insufficient evidence to support an investigation. But the teen's parents, Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson, hired Dr. William R. Anderson to provide a second opinion after a judge agreed in May to exhume the body. In June 2018, Kendrick Johnsons body was exhumed for a second time and a third autopsy was performed. 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. Although it is one of the most complex of all musical instruments, the organ . His mother posted on her Facebook: No mother or father should ever have to bury their child under these circumstances. because the lungs fill with fluid, causing death. The county medical examiner concluded Johnson died of positional asphyxia and deemed his death accidental. (AP) SAVANNAH, Ga. - The parents of a Georgia teenager whose body was found inside a rolled-up wrestling mat at school . Kendrick Johnsons shoe laying in the pool of blood. Copyright 2023 WLS-TV. Kendricks first exhumation was met with controversy; when it was revealed that every organ from his pelvis to his skull, including his brain, heart, lungs, and liver, was gone and replaced with newspaper. [14] On October 31, 2013, U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore announced that his office would open a formal review into Johnson's death. Kendrick Johnsons parents released a photo to the media of their sons face as he lay in the funeral home. Asked how he planned to do that, Crump said, "We're going to have to look at getting the courts involved." Kendrick reportedly confided in his father about Branden telling classmates that the issue was not over., According to the father, Kendrick said, You know Rick Bell, Brians daddyhe came up to me at school and told me the fight on the bus wasnt a fair fight and I should come to his house and re-fight Brian.. Austin said Brian pulled Kendricks locs and held his head down, prompting the fight. [12], A subsequent investigation by the Georgia Secretary of State's office found that the funeral home did not follow "best practice" and that other material was "more acceptable than newspaper." Ill never let them forget, Jacquelyn told filmmakers. "I'd never heard of that before, never. 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. Both Credle and Pollock said they are not hopeful it will provide any solace to Kendricks family. Johnson was captured, killed, castrated and his body dragged for miles. All rights reserved. In November 2013, 290 hours of surveillance tape from 35 cameras that covered the gym area were released to CNN following a court request. Kendrick Johnson lived with his family in Valdosta, Georgia and attended Lowndes High School. He was just in his socks. In place of the organs were crumpled pieces of newspaper. All that could be seen from the cameras was Kendrick Johnson walking towards the gym, and then several seconds of footage of him jogging within the gym. [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. A shoe found on top of a pool of blood near Kendricks body [Image: Lowndes Regional Crime Laboratory]Finding Kendrick Johnson presents police documents that state that Kendrick is 5 feet, 10 inches tall and his shoulders measured 19 inches. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Its been eight long years, said Kendrick Johnsons mother, Jacquelyn. But it's just not something that's within what I would consider acceptable standards.". [17], Johnson's family requested that his body be exhumed for a second time and was granted permission by Valdosta city officials. 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. 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. Johnson's family asked the Justice Department to get involved, arguing that authorities failed to investigate Johnson's death thoroughly because he's black. Over the years, the Johnsons have publicly implicated brothers Brian and Branden Bell in Kendricks death. "Is newspaper necessarily more indicting that sawdust or cotton?" In the face of this racist mob violence, some 500 . Its up to us to move the needle for KJ, because they are never going to do it down there.. But those dreams were cut short when his body was found by students entering the gymnasium rolled up in a standing gym mat. Johnson's family discovered him to be missing his organs although the South Georgia Lowndes County Sheriff's investigation ruled Johnson's death a freak accident. State and local officials ruled that Kendrick suffocated after purportedly reaching for a pair of sneakers inside the mat and getting stuck. R.I.P Kendrick Johnson Facebook PageKendrick Johnsons casket was unearthed for a second time for a third autopsy. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. A private pathologist was hired to carry out a second autopsy. The teenager's family announced Thursday that the Florida lawyer who helped push for a criminal prosecution in the shooting of Trayvon Martin has joined efforts to reopen an investigation into Johnson's death. On May 8, 2013, a judge granted Kendrick Johnsons body be exhumed. 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. 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.

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