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But Johnson's family believes he was killed and has been pressuring authorities into taking a second look at the case. Kendrick Johnson death: Parents find son's organs were missing when 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. Medical examiners commonly remove internal organs during forensic autopsies. He said Johnson's organs were missing when the body arrived at Harrington. From May 17 to 24, a white mob of 700 lynched at least 13 African Americans, including pregnant 21-year-old Mary Turner. In May of 1918, a Black farmworker named Sidney Johnson, tired of mistreatment, killed his white boss. Pollock said, Its up to the national pressure. I really dont. The Johnsons were also sure that their sons body had been moved, which was corroborated by Lowndes County Coroner, Bill Watson. Its been eight long years, said Kendrick Johnsons mother, Jacquelyn. Kenneth also said lacerations and bruising to his sons face made him think Kendrick was in some sort of fight. 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. The brothers father, As Pollock explained to CrimeOnline, the bombshell evidence did not come from an anonymous source or undercover sleuthing it was plainly stated in the FBIs 2014 analysis report. [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. 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 video analysis: part 1 The family didn't even know the late teen's brain, heart, lungs, liver and other viscera were missing until the middle of last year, when an autopsy. FacebookKendrick Johnson with his mother. Then, read about the horrifying murder of Emmett Till. Anatomy. Justice for Kendrick Johnson! - Workers World But his parents would later maintain that his size versus the size of the mat alone was enough to debunk the investigators case. [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. All Rights Reserved. CrimeOnlines continuing coverage of the Kendrick Johnson case, blood splatter located 40 feet from Kendricks body, blunt force trauma, right neck, involving right mandible, Kendricks organs were returned to his body following the autopsy, Five decades later, Emmett Till accuser recants claims, Rick Bell, was an FBI special agent who ultimately resigned, subscribe to the Crime Stories with Nancy Grace podcast. Attorneys for the Johnson family expressed fears that the camera footage was edited as part of a cover-up. 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. He said it was too soon to be more specific. 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. Kendrick Johnson, 17, was found dead and rolled up inside a high school gym mat back in 2013. The fact that Brian didnt see KJ was a huge thing that they used for years against the Johnson family.. 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. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. The lawsuit alleged that the defendants were negligent and violated Johnson's constitutional right to equal protection based on race. R.I.P Kendrick Johnson Facebook PageKendrick Johnsons casket was unearthed for a second time for a third 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. [14] On October 31, 2013, U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore announced that his office would open a formal review into Johnson's death. [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. A spokeswoman for the state told CNN after its autopsy, "the organs were placed in Johnson's body, the body was closed, then the body was released to the funeral home." As Kendrick lay dead in the gym, the basketball and color guard teams held their night practices. I don't know. [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." "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. "[18] The Johnson family subsequently filed a civil lawsuit against the funeral home, seeking monetary damages. Just after 24 hours of being found, the investigators ruled Johnsons death an accident. "[11] Johnson's family questioned this hypothesis. [33], On June 20, 2016, the Department of Justice announced that they would not be filing any criminal charges related to Johnson's death, stating, "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 Johnson's civil rights or committed any other prosecutable federal crime. Kendrick Johnson, a 5-foot-10, 160-pound multi-talented athlete, attended classes on the morning of January 10, 2012. 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. Just after 1pm, he entered the gym, never to come out alive. Kendrick's organs were never located. [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. "There may not be any law that prohibits it. Georgia: Nothing illegal in filling dead youth's body with newspaper - CNN Kendrick Johnson was last seen 1:30pm Thursday 1/10. Well, a lot of people ask why didnt you test everyone at the school? Well, number one, we dont have a legal basis, number two, youre talking about testing 3,000 people, he said. Kendrick was found dead in the gymnasium at 10:30 a.m. on January 11, roughly 10 hours after his family reported him missing. Tongue: Anatomy, Function, and Disorders - Verywell Health State investigators say it's their normal practice, but what happened after his body arrived at the funeral home was anything but normal. On June 20, 2016, the Department of Justice announced that it would not be filing any criminal charges related to Johnson's death. 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. Why would the funeral home discard his organs and replace them with newspaper? Lowndes County sheriff's investigators concluded that he died in a freak accident, falling headfirst into an upright mat. Thats another red flag.. 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. Through interviews, police documents, and forensic evidence, Finding Kendrick Johnson illustrates how a 17-year-old boys disappearance and death sparked years worth of investigations, controversies, and a possible cover-up. Johnson's family asked the Justice Department to get involved, arguing that authorities failed to investigate Johnson's death thoroughly because he's black.