Kendrick Johnson’s parents expected to file documents alleging false information against Lowndes Co. sheriff

VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) - The parents of Kendrick Johnson, the 17-year-old teen whose dead body was found rolled up inside a mat at Lowndes High School in 2013, will soon be filing documentation in federal court in Atlanta.

On Sept. 19, 2023, the Johnsons are expected to submit documentation regarding current Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk’s investigation synopsis from January 2022. Johnson’s parents plan to address what they say is false information about the death of their son.

Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk closed the case at the beginning of 2022, nearly 10 years after Kendrick’s death. Paulk ruled the death an accident saying Kendrick died of positional asphyxiation when he fell into a vertical gym mat while reaching for something.

In 2022, WALB sat down with Paulk, and he explained why he feels 100% confident that there was no foul play in the case.

“The first autopsy was done by the GBI, and it says positional asphyxiation accident. Approximately two years later, he was exhumed, and it was paid for autopsy by Dr. Anderson,” Paulk said. “And there’s a fourth autopsy done by the Department of Defense that came back identical to what the GBI said initially. If somebody comes back and says you’re wrong, I’m wrong! Prove it to me.”

The Johnsons have never believed that. They believe Kendrick was murdered and placed in the gym mat. They’ve lost several court battles along the way.

“For 10 years, the Johnsons have endured having their constitutional rights violated and interfered with by government employees in the state of Georgia poisoning the well with the farce, the scientifically and physically impossible narrative that Kendrick Johnson died from a freak accident,” Jonathan R. Burrs, a family spokesperson, said.

The Johnsons say they will take this fight all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court if necessary.

WALB’s coverage of Kendrick Johnson’s case from January 2022 can be found here.