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. They were all absent.". . Kendrick was found dead in the gymnasium at 10:30 a.m. on January 11, roughly 10 hours after his family reported him missing. October 11, 2013 / 11:31 AM Kendrick vanished at Lowndes High School around 1:20 p.m. on January 10, 2013. However, when Dr. Bill Anderson, the independent pathologist who performed Johnson's second autopsy,. He concluded the teenager died from blunt force trauma near his carotid artery and that the fatal blow appeared to be nonaccidental. 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. Emmitt Till alongside his mother, Mamie Till Mobley [Image: AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis]An all-white jury acquitted Bryants husband and brother-in-law within an hour. Sheriff Chris Prine has said he suspected Johnson became trapped trying to retrieve a shoe that fell into the center of the large, rolled mat. The public was horrified by the photo and began to rally around the Johnsons in their quest for the truth. Every organ from the top of Kendrick's head to his pelvis was gone. [40], "Kendrick Johnson" redirects here. He also said standard embalming practice is to fill empty space in body cavities with material such as sawdust or cotton. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, [39] He further stated that two brothers, named in previous legal actions by the Johnsons, are not suspects. Legal Statement. Benjamin Crump, the lawyer who helped focus national attention on the 2012 shooting death of Martin by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, said the discovery raises questions about why Johnson's organs went missing and couldn't be examined in the follow-up autopsy the family requested. The county medical examiner concluded Johnson died of positional asphyxia and deemed his death accidental. Pollock told CrimeOnline that the lungs of someone who asphyxiates are heavier because the lungs fill with fluid, causing death. His parents also revealed that when Johnson's body was exhumed over the summer for a second autopsy, the private pathologist discovered his organs were missing and newspaper had been used to fill the body cavity. [14] The governor's office released a statement indicating that they would await the report of the U.S. Russ Bynum/AP. "I'm terribly sorry for the family," Watson said. Despite these resignations, the Department of Justice investigation continued. 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. But those dreams were cut short when his body was found by students entering the gymnasium rolled up in a standing gym mat. 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. Under normal circumstances, the tongue is a pink, muscular organ located within the oral cavity proper. Credle along with Kendricks parents, relatives, and friends recounted their experiences for Finding Kendrick Johnson, a new documentary that is available on various streaming platforms, including. Till was found in the river with a cotton gin fan tied to his neck with barbed wire. In place of the organs were crumpled pieces of newspaper. The tongue's anatomy is complex; it involves interlacing muscles, nerves, and a blood supply. 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. What made me think that everything was a cover-upwas that first meeting with the medical examiner, Mitch Credle said. [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. Kendricks father was shocked by his sons disfigured body. In June 2018, Kendrick Johnsons body was exhumed for a second time and a third autopsy was performed. But Johnsons parents would still not give up. State and local law enforcement officials ruled the death an accidental. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. "[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. His son, 17-year-old Kendrick Johnson, was dead. 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. The only way Im going to know is to look at the evidence myself.. When rolled up, the mat left a 14-inch hole in diameter in the center. Investigators did not take the hoodie and orange and black gym shoes into evidence. Images from the scene show Johnson lying in a pool of blood. Meanwhile, Johnson's parents are preparing to file a lawsuit asking a judge to order a coroner's inquest in their son's death, said Chevene King, an attorney working with the family. Finally, it confirms that Kendrick Johnson's organs were removed and replaced with newspaper for the purpose of concealing time of death and revealing further, fatal injuries. Just after 1pm, he entered the gym, never to come out alive. Kendrick Johnsons shoe laying in the pool of blood. U.S. Attorney Michael Moore in Macon has been monitoring the case but has yet to announce whether he'll take any further action. 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. 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. While Jacquelyn may have been kept from her son to secure the scene and possible evidence, Pollock told CrimeOnline that Lowndes High School was not placed on lockdown the morning the teens body was found on campus. Inside Biden's new mortgage fee rules. UNDATED: Kendrick Johnson,17, was found dead inside his high school's gym. But Lowndes County Coroner Bill Watson said many of Johnson's organs were deemed too badly decomposed to be preserved and had to be disposed of before the body was sent to the funeral home. ", Neither had the founder of a national embalming academy, who said it's "not consistent with the standards of care" in the industry. Johnson's family asked the Justice Department to get involved, arguing that authorities failed to investigate Johnson's death thoroughly because he's black. The only thing that wakes you up in the morning is to just keep pushing," said Jacquelyn Johnson. "There may not be any law that prohibits it. "I'm terribly sorry for the family," Watson said. (AP). The familys attorney, Chevene King, expressed thatif Kendrick had been white, the case would have been handled differently. 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. However, the coroner said these organs were not sent to the funeral home because they were too decomposed and were instead disposed of beforehand. They also reported that the blood had likely been there for a long time. The Georgia secretary of state's office, which regulates funeral homes in the states, is investigating how Johnson's body was handled, spokesman Jared Thomas said. The attorney who helped push for a criminal prosecution in Trayvon Martin's shooting said Thursday that he's joining the fight to reopen an investigation into the death of a Georgia teenager whose body was found inside a rolled-up wrestling mat at school. [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 claim that in the findings of the initial autopsy, Johnson's cause of death was ruled by accidental asphyxiation when he got stuck in the mat while trying to retrieve a shoe. The Johnsons hired Doctor Bill Anderson to conduct an independent second autopsy. The Georgia secretary of state's office, which regulates funeral homes in the states, is investigating how Johnson's body was handled, spokesman Jared Thomas said. Respondents include three of Johnson's classmates (two or three respondents are unnamed) and local, state, and federal officials: the school superintendent of Lowndes County, the Valdosta-Lowndes crime lab, the police chief of Valdosta, many sheriff's deputies, the city of Valdosta, the state medical examiner, the GBI and five of its agents, and one FBI agent. "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. The photo, in which Kendrick Johnsons face is extremely swollen, almost does not look human. The initial autopsy revealed that Johnson died due to positional asphyxia or that he suffocated as a result of being stuck upside-down in an enclosed space for an extended period of time. On May 8, 2013, a judge granted Kendrick Johnsons body be exhumed. in June 2016, citing insufficient evidence. NY Daily News/Valdosta/Lowndes Regional Crime Labratory via CNNKendrick Johnsons body rolled up inside the gym mat with his shoes behind his knees. READ More: Five decades later, Emmett Till accuser recants claims. Finding Kendrick Johnson makes the claim that the 17-year-olds killer has been in plain sight all these years with an alibi that had already been refuted by federal investigators. But his parents would later maintain that his size versus the size of the mat alone was enough to debunk the investigators case. [26], Shortly before the lawsuit was filed, U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore said in a statement that a federal investigation was still open and that "the investigation has proven more complicated and taken longer than originally anticipated. Despite this, the, Department of Justice closed the investigation. "I feel outraged about them stuffing my son's body with newspaper," Jaquelyn Johnson said. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation medical examiner concluded that the youth died from positional asphyxia, his body stuck in a position in which he couldn't breathe. Moore did not immediately return a phone message Thursday. But when he did return, he and his wife held a press conference begging authorities to not take their sons body out of Lowndes County before they saw it. GBI spokeswoman Sherry Lang said the agency stands by its original findings. Updated: 12:46 AM EST March 10, 2021 JACKSONVILLE, Fla The Lowndes County Sheriff's Office announced Friday that it has reopened the investigation into the death of Kendrick Johnson, whose. This finding further increased the confidence of doubters that this death was an accident. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation medical examiner concluded that he died from positional asphyxia, his body stuck in a position in which he couldn't breathe. Then without parent consent, a surgeon at the hospital harvested her organs . 2013 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. In 2007, Bryant allegedly revealed to. 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. More from CNN at http://www.cnn.comTo lice. 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. 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. [31] They were subsequently sued for more than $850,000 in attorney fees[32] and $1,000,000 in defamation damages. / CBS News. 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. "I'm not sure at this point who did not return the organs to the body, but I know when we got the body, the organs were not there," Anderson said. Johnson's organs appeared to be missing from his body, according to an autopsy. I don't know. Ill never let them forget, Jacquelyn told filmmakers. 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. Lowndes County sheriff's investigators concluded that he died in a freak accident, falling headfirst into an upright mat. Meanwhile, Pollock, who called for a federal probe, said he does not believe justice will find Kendricks case in Georgia. [2] That left a void, which the funeral home filled. "But I don't think raising all this Cain down here is going to bring closure to them. But Lowndes County Coroner Bill Watson said many of Johnson's organs were deemed too badly decomposed to be preserved and had to be disposed of before the body was sent to the funeral home. "[26] After Moore resigned in 2015,[27] the case was transferred to the Northern District of Ohio under U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach. Then, in 2014, Kendrick Johnsons parents filed a wrongful death suit against the schools officials, alleging that Johnson had been harassed by a white student which went neglected by the school, perhaps due to his race. On top of this, the second autopsy revealed that some of Johnsons organs were missing and in their place, his body had been stuffed with newspaper. But during a second autopsy, a private pathologist discovered Johnson's organs were missing and newspaper was used to replace them. Watson said he reviewed the second autopsy report on Johnson, but found it vague and lacking the specifics of the GBI's findings. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Over the years, the Johnsons have publicly implicated brothers Brian and Branden Bell in Kendricks death. Police said a bloody tissue was found in the girls bathroom near the gym was also tested and did not match the blood discovered near Kendricks body, according to Valdosta Today. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. 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. While presenting the case to the public in October 2014, Lieutenant Stride Jones explained why they could not test every student. But the Justice Department found insufficient evidence to support an investigation. "They brought me in to make sure this is not able to be swept under the rug in small-town Georgia and they never get justice for their child.". Medical examiners commonly remove internal organs during forensic autopsies. 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.
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