Alabama Gov. Ivey Commutes Toforest Johnson's Death Sentence, Citing 'Not Enough Direct Evidence'

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday commuted the death sentence of Toforest Johnson to life in prison without parole, saying she had concerns that there was "not enough direct evidence" to carry out an execution in a case that the current district attorney and several former judges and prosecutors have questioned for years, the Associated Press reported.

Johnson was convicted of the 1995 murder of Jefferson County Deputy Sheriff William Hardy, who was shot twice in the head while working off-duty security at a hotel in Birmingham. Johnson has long maintained that he was on the other side of the city when the shooting happened.

"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 in a statement, according to the AP. "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."

Toforest Johnson: 'Not a Determination of Innocence'

Ivey, a Republican, has overseen 27 executions as governor and has now commuted three death sentences, the AP reported. Her term ends in January because she is term-limited, according to Fox News.

The governor acted despite a letter from Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, who urged her on Oct. 16 to reject the clemency request and to "respect the jury's decision" and the rulings of the courts that reviewed the case, the AP reported.

Johnson's attorney Ty Alper said his client is grateful to Ivey for "diligently reviewing Toforest's case and taking action to spare an innocent man from execution," but said the fight to overturn the conviction will continue.

"Toforest Johnson is innocent. 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," Alper said in a statement, according to the AP.

A Case That 'Unraveled Over 20 Years,' the DA Says

Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr, who was elected in 2018, has supported Johnson's request for a new trial. In a 2024 court filing, Carr wrote that the "evidence in this case has unraveled over 20 years," the AP reported.

Carr said in 2024 that credible alibi witnesses place Johnson elsewhere at the time of the crime and that there are multiple reasons to doubt the key prosecution witness, who said she overheard Johnson confess during a three-way phone call on which she was eavesdropping, according to the AP.

That witness was paid $5,000 in 2001 for her testimony, and Johnson's lawyers argue the state withheld evidence of a monetary motive, the AP reported.

Former Alabama Attorney General Bill Baxley, former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justices Sonny Hornsby and Drayton Nabers, and other former judges and prosecutors have filed briefs or written editorials supporting a new trial, according to the AP. Fox News reported that the original prosecutor in the case is among those backing Johnson's bid.

Johnson remains incarcerated at the Holman Correctional Facility, Fox News reported.

Image: DXR / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Hold Everyone Accountable.

Sources: The Associated Press via The Morning Call, "Alabama Gov. Ivey spares death row inmate citing doubts about evidence" (Oct. 20, 2026): https://www.mcall.com/2026/10/20/alabama-toforest-johnson-death-row/ ; Fox News, "Alabama governor commutes death sentence as doubts emerge over evidence in murder conviction" (Oct. 21, 2026): https://www.foxnews.com/us/alabama-governor-commutes-death-sentence-doubts-emerge-evidence-murder-conviction