MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday commuted Toforest Johnson’s death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, citing concerns about whether there was enough direct evidence to justify an execution.
Johnson remains convicted of capital murder in the 1995 shooting death of Jefferson County Deputy William G. Hardy. The governor’s action changes his punishment but does not overturn the conviction, grant him a new trial or release him from prison.
“When presented with Mr. Johnson’s case, I had concerns there was not enough direct evidence to carry out the most serious punishment, death,” Ivey said. “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.”
In a letter dated Oct. 20, Ivey directed Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner Greg Lovelace to replace the death sentence with life imprisonment without parole.
The letter cites the governor’s commutation authority under the Alabama Constitution and a state law barring parole eligibility when a governor commutes a death sentence.
Ivey said she notified a designated representative of Hardy’s family before exercising that authority and also notified Attorney General Steve Marshall.
Hardy, a 23-year law enforcement veteran, was shot and killed July 19, 1995, in the parking lot of the Crown Sterling Suites hotel in Birmingham. He was off duty from the sheriff’s office and working security at the hotel.
Johnson’s initial trial ended in a mistrial when jurors could not agree on a verdict. A second jury convicted him of capital murder in 1998 and recommended the death penalty by a 10-2 vote. The trial court imposed the death sentence.
Johnson has maintained his innocence, and questions surrounding the evidence have persisted for years. Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr formally urged a court to grant Johnson a new trial in 2020 and renewed that position in a detailed 2024 filing.
Carr’s office said its review included prosecution and law enforcement files, trial and post-conviction transcripts, witness interviews and consultations with Hardy’s family.
The district attorney took no position on Johnson’s guilt or innocence but concluded the conviction was unreliable enough to require a new trial.
According to Carr’s filing, no physical evidence or eyewitness account placed Johnson at the crime scene.
The prosecution’s case centered on Violet Ellison, who testified that she overheard Johnson confess during a three-way telephone call.
The filing said Ellison received $5,000 for her testimony and that credible alibi witnesses later placed Johnson across town at the time of Hardy’s killing.
It also said Jeff Wallace, the lead prosecutor who obtained Johnson’s conviction and death sentence, now supports a new trial based on information he did not have when the case was prosecuted.
The Alabama Attorney General’s Office has continued defending Johnson’s conviction and sentence. Ivey thanked the office’s Capital Litigation Division for its work on the case.
Ivey emphasized that the decision does not signal a change in her support for capital punishment.
She said her administration has overseen 27 executions and will continue using the death penalty while reviewing each case carefully.
Johnson will spend the remainder of his life in prison with no opportunity for parole.
“Today, I pray for Deputy Sheriff Hardy’s loved ones,” Ivey said. “Deputy Sheriff Hardy died a hero, working hard to protect his fellow citizens.”
