State bar rejects complaint in KJ case

Feb. 7—VALDOSTA — The State Bar of Georgia has turned down a grievance filed against a Valdosta attorney by the father of a high school student whose death in 2013 sparked an 11-year-long legal saga.

A letter from the bar informed attorney James L. Elliott of the Elliott Blackburn law firm that a grievance filed by Kenneth L. Johnson — father of Kendrick "KJ" Johnson — had been dismissed.

"The evidentiary value of the documents included fail to support a grievance against Mr. Elliott," the letter said.

Elliott was representing the Lowndes County Sheriff's Office, a frequent target of the Johnson family. Kenneth Johnson had filed a claim with the state bar that Elliott had colluded with various government agencies to conceal the cause of KJ's death, the state bar said in the letter.

"The dismissal of the complaint by the State Bar of Georgia is just the latest example of the Johnsons' years'-long pattern of bringing baseless and unsubstantiated claims," Elliott said.

A press release provided by Jonathan Burrs, a spokesperson for the Johnson family, said Kenneth Johnson had filed complaints recently with the Department of Justice Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Atlanta claiming corruption in the aftermath of his son's death.

The state bar declined comment, citing bar rules.

The body of Johnson was found upside-down in a vertically stored gym mat at Lowndes High School in January 2013. A state autopsy ruled the 17-year-old's death accidental, taking place when he became stuck, upside down, upon crawling into the mat to retrieve a shoe.

A federal review of the case ended in 2016 when the Department of Justice announced it had not found "sufficient evidence to support federal criminal charges."

The Johnson family maintains their son died of foul play. Johnson's body was exhumed more than once for follow-up autopsies.

In the years since the teen's death, the Johnson family has launched various lawsuits against dozens of individuals in state and federal courts. A lawsuit filed in Lowndes County Superior Court against dozens of defendants for $100 million was dropped in March 2016. A federal investigation found no conclusive evidence of foul play. A federal lawsuit was dropped when an attorney representing Johnson's parents failed to meet filing deadlines.

Many conspiracy theories grew around the case, which remains popular on social media.

About 15 months ago, Sheriff Ashley Paulk — who was not in office when Johnson died — began a review of documents from past investigations, including one by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He said that, as someone with no connection to the case, he could provide "unbiased facts." His study found no evidence a crime was committed.

The latest federal lawsuit by the Johnson family, filed Oct. 19, claims the sheriff's office and the GBI were involved in a conspiracy to report fake news about KJ's death.

Terry Richards is the senior reporter for The Valdosta Daily Times.