Toforest Johnson is seen in this undated photo. Gov. Kay Ivey Tuesday commuted Johnson's death sentence to life without parole. Major questions have been raised about the credibility of a witness whose testimony led to Johnson's conviction for the 1995 murder of off-duty Jefferson County Sheriff's Deputy William Hardy. (Alabama Department of Corrections)
Gov. Kay Ivey Tuesday commuted the death sentence of Toforest Johnson, whose conviction for the murder of an off-duty Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy in 1995 has faced years of questions over the conduct of prosecutors and the reliability of a key witness.
Ivey said in a statement Tuesday that she had concerns that “there was not enough direct evidence to carry out the most serious punishment, death.”
“My decision is not a determination of innocence, but a recognition that the circumstances of this case justify commuting his death sentence to life imprisonment, without possibility of parole,” the statement said.
Ty Alper, an attorney for Johnson, who has always maintained his innocence, said in a statement Tuesday that the commutation “was made possible by Alabamians from all sectors of society united in their belief that Toforest does not belong on death row. That list now includes Governor Ivey.”
“Toforest Johnson is innocent,” the statement said. “Now it is up to the courts to overturn his conviction and grant him a new trial. We will keep fighting until he is home with his family.”
Johnson was convicted in 1998 for the July 19, 1995 murder of William Hardy, a Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy who was working as a security guard at a hotel, in a hotel parking lot. No physical evidence tied Johnson to the crime, and a jury deadlocked at his first trial.
At his second, a witness claimed to have heard a “Toforest” confess to the crime on a three-way prison phone call. The witness, Violet Ellison, was later paid a $5,000 reward, a fact prosecutors did not share with Johnson’s defense team.
Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr in 2020 issued a report that cast significant doubts on the investigation and prosecution. Several Alabama political figures, including former Lt. Gov. Bill Baxley and former Alabama Chief Justice Drayton Nabers, have called for a new trial or for Johnson’s conviction to be overturned.
Ivey has presided over the most executions of any Alabama governor since the death penalty was reintroduced in 1983. In 2025, Ivey commuted the death sentence of Rocky Myers over questions of his guilt. In March, Ivey commuted the death sentence of Charles “Sonny” Burton, who was sentenced to death for the 1991 murder of Doug Battle in a Talladega AutoZone during a robbery. Burton did not kill Battle and was not present in the store when Battle was killed.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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Author: Alabama Reflector staff