Kendrick Johnson death update: students listed in lawsuit, Brian Bell to FSU

The parents of Kendrick Johnson still haven’t gotten answered to the death of their son and now have filed a lawsuit accusing classmates of killing him at school.

The Georgia teen was found in a rolled up gym mat two years ago and this the wrongful death lawsuit names 38 defendants. In fact, the lawsuit says three Lowndes High School classmates attacked Kendrick, 17, on January 10, 2013.

Leigh Touchton, a former Valdosta NAACP president who has closely followed the case, says allegations in the lawsuit filed Monday are outrageous and unfounded.

The Johnson family is seeking $100 million and targets the sheriff, as well as the Lowndes County School District.

In a written statement, Lowndes County Attorney, Jim Elliot said this:

“We have received and reviewed the complaint filed in DeKalb Superior Court by the Johnsons and their lawyer against thirty-eight named defendants… including seventeen Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office personnel. The accusations made against Sheriff Prine and his officers are unfounded and lack any basis in law or in fact. We will respond further to these baseless accusations through the Courts.”

The lawsuit says DeKalb County has “Subject Matter Jurisdiction” because one or more of the defendants lives there.

Federal authorities are conducting their own investigation. The Sheriff’s department’s investigators concluded it was a freak accident.

The press statement from the AP doesn’t sound like the media is on the Johnson’s side: “Lowndes County sheriff’s investigators concluded long ago that Johnson died in a freak accident, saying he became stuck upside down while trying to retrieve a shoe that fell into the upright mat. His parents, Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson, insist their son was slain…” noting that:

“The lawsuit also says Johnson’s slaying was covered up in a conspiracy involving the local school superintendent, the Valdosta police chief, the director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, five GBI agents, 17 sheriff’s investigators and deputies, the state medical examiner who conducted the autopsy and others.”

One of the students, Brian Bell, is headed to FSU and the Internet went crazy: “The lawsuit also says Johnson’s slaying was covered up in a conspiracy involving the local school superintendent, the Valdosta police chief, the director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, five GBI agents, 17 sheriff’s investigators and deputies, the state medical examiner who conducted the autopsy and others.”

More on that HERE