26 Facts About Toforest Johnson

Toforest Onesha Johnson was born on February 8,1973 and is an American man on death row for the 1995 murder of Jefferson County deputy sheriff William G Hardy in Alabama.

Toforest Johnson was convicted based on the testimony of a single witness, Violet Ellison, who allegedly overheard Toforest Johnson confessing to the murder during a jailhouse phone call she eavesdropped on.

Toforest Johnson's lawyers have presented alibi evidence showing that Toforest Johnson and a friend, Ardragus Ford, were together at a nightclub miles away when the murder happened.

Toforest Johnson's story is the subject of a critically acclaimed eight-episode investigative podcast, Earwitness, by Alabama-based journalist Beth Shelburne.

Currently, Toforest Johnson remains on death row at the Holman Correctional Facility and his execution date has yet to be scheduled.

Toforest Onesha Johnson was born in Birmingham, Alabama on February 8,1973.

Toforest Johnson mostly grew up in Birmingham's Pratt City neighborhood but moved to Birmingham's Ensley community when he was 16.

Toforest Johnson's children have been on the forefront of advocacy for their father to get a new trial.

Toforest Johnson attempted to contact Hardy over the radio to ask Hardy to check the source of the sounds.

Toforest Johnson called 911 to report the shots and request backup for Hardy.

Toforest Johnson returned to the front desk and called 911 again to report the deputy had been injured.

Toforest Johnson added that the gunshot wound to Hardy's forehead and the exit hole in both Hardy's hat and back of his head suggested that one of the two bullets was delivered about 12 to 20 inches away from Hardy's forehead and at approximately a 15-degree upward angle.

Toforest Johnson was arrested at the scene due to an outstanding traffic warrant and the other three people were allowed to go home.

Ford told his attorney that if it were true that Toforest Johnson committed the crime, he would say so "in a heartbeat," but refused to lie and so the trial went forward, with Ford facing the death penalty.

However, prosecutors no longer argued that Ford shot Deputy Hardy and instead argued that Toforest Johnson was the one who fired the fatal shots.

In defense, Toforest Johnson's lawyers called two alibi witnesses who put Toforest Johnson at Tee's Place, a nightclub on the other side of town, at the time of the crime.

Toforest Johnson's attorneys called Yolanda Chambers to testify that Toforest Johnson was at the crime scene but did not commit the murder.

Toforest Johnson petitioned for review to the US Supreme Court in April 2023.

On November 14,2024, Toforest Johnson filed a new petition to the Jefferson County Circuit Court for a fresh review of his case.

Many have commented on how thin the evidence against Toforest Johnson was, given that Ellison did not know Toforest Johnson previously and had never heard his voice.

The concerns about the validity of Toforest Johnson's conviction has led many to call for his conviction to be overturned.

Carr emphasized that even the original lead prosecutor of Toforest Johnson's trial told Carr of his "grave doubts" about the case.

The conclusion that Toforest Johnson's conviction is fundamentally unreliable is not based on any one fact.

Some former jurors from Toforest Johnson's trial have publicly expressed their hopes that Toforest Johnson's conviction would be overturned and felt that they would not have found him guilty had they known what they know now.

Toforest Johnson sought and obtained Johnson's conviction and death sentence over the course of two trials and many years.

The podcast is hosted by Birmingham-based journalist, Beth Shelburne, and focuses on answering the question of why Toforest Johnson is still on death row when even the prosecutor who tried and convicted him has asked the courts to overturn his conviction.