PARENTS OF H.S. FOOTBALL PLAYER FOUND DEAD ROLLED UP IN A GYM MAT WANTS A CORONER'S INQUIRY

KENDRICK JOHNSON

The parents of Kendrick Johnson, the student-athlete found dead in a rolled-up gym mat, are petitioning a Georgia judge to order a coroner's inquest into their son's death, the couple's lawyer said Tuesday.
Kenneth and Jacquelyn Johnson believe the surveillance video taken inside the Lowndes High School gym will show what happened to their son. So far, only a short clip of the video has been made public.

Johnson, 17, was found dead Jan. 11. An autopsy conducted by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation indicated Kendrick accidentally suffocated inside the mat while trying to retrieve his sneaker.

Benjamin Crump, the Florida lawyer who helped push for a prosecution in Trayvon Martin's fatal shooting, said he believes the findings of an inquest would support the family's belief that Johnson's death was a homicide.

In a press conference Tuesday, lawyers said there are at least four video cameras in the gymnasium, one of which was aimed toward the corner where Kendrick's body was found.
Officials have said they must wait for consent from other minors in the video before they can release it.

The U.S. attorney's office has the video and is reviewing the case.