Bone Valley
Bone Valley
Bone Valley Season 4 | EARWITNESS chronicles the case of Toforest Jonhson. In 1995, Deputy Sheriff William G. Hardy was murdered behind a hotel in Birmingham, Alabama. Toforest Johnson was four miles away at the time, and no physical evidence linked him to the crime. But he has been on Death Row for 25 years. Lava for Good’s 8-episode docuseries Earwitness follows journalist Beth Shelburne’s dogg…Social links:
Follow the podcast:
Bondage to the Law
Earwitness, Chapter 8 | Bondage to the Law In an unusual turn, District Attorney Danny Carr and original prosecutor Jeff Wallace push against Toforest Johnson’s conviction, even as he remains on death row. Beth Shelburne traces a system reluctant to admit its failures, while Toforest’s children re…
45:21Explicit
Messy
Earwitness, Chapter 7 | Messy Years after the conviction, the original prosecutor, Jeff Wallace, begins questioning Violet Ellison’s story, while Beth Shelburne uncovers a troubling pattern. Ellison’s moves through the legal system blur the lines between cunning and deceit, revealing a figure far …
38:43Explicit
Misfiled
Earwitness, Chapter 6 | Misfiled Beth Shelburne uncovers the murky story behind Violet Ellison, the ‘earwitness’ whose $5,000 payoff shaped Toforest Johnson’s fate. Decades of denial give way to uneasy facts, revealing a conviction propped up by money, influence, and half-truths. To learn more an…
46:38Explicit
Anybody Will Do
Earwitness, Chapter 5 | Anybody Will Do Beth Shelburne digs into how Toforest Johnson was convicted without a shred of physical evidence, as prosecutors leap between ever-shifting theories of Deputy Hardy’s murder. Confronting the prosecutor who once sought a death sentence, she uncovers a case wh…
57:07Explicit
Witness or Defendant
Earwitness, Chapter 4 | Witness or Defendant Digging into the Hardy murder investigation, Beth Shelburne follows a trail narrowed by tunnel vision and vanishing alternatives. As detectives chase certainty over truth, witnesses falter, leads evaporate, and a case emerges driven more by obsession th…
47:07Explicit
Police Girl
Earwitness, Chapter 3 | Police Girl When Yolanda Chambers admits to perjury, Beth Shelburne sets out to understand Chambers’ motivations. Tracing a life shaped by trauma and hidden alliances, her story slips between villain and victim—leaving behind questions that linger far longer than answers. …
43:38Explicit
Don't Know Diddly
Earwitness, Chapter 2 | Don't Know Diddly In the raw hours after Deputy Hardy’s murder, Beth Shelburne digs through a story that pulled 15-year-old Yolanda Chambers into its orbit and put Toforest Johnson in the frame. A confrontation with lead detective Tony Richardson exposes a case built on pre…
47:37Explicit
Behind the Crown
Earwitness, Chapter 1 | Behind the Crown Beth Shelburne dives into the shocking conviction of Toforest Johnson for the murder of Deputy William Hardy, following a case that never stopped bleeding questions. With former Attorney General Bill Baxley as her guide, she moves through a justice system w…
43:08Explicit
Introducing - Bone Valley Season 4 | Earwitness
Today we're introducing you to Earwitness. Earwitness is one of Lava for Good’s most important investigative series and will be released right here in the Bone Valley feed. You’ll see it shown here as Bone Valley Season 4 but it is a completely different show told by a different host - noted Alabam…
04:32Explicit
Gilbert King Presents: Bone Valley Season 4 | Earwitness
Today, we're bringing you something unexpected: Lava for Good’s investigative series Earwitness will be released right here in the Bone Valley feed. You'll see it here as Bone Valley Season 4: Earwitness. The entire season will be available to Lava For Good+ subscribers on Apple Podcasts on January…
34:38Clean