Bone Valley: Season 4 – Earwitness

Chapter 5: Anybody Will Do

Date: February 4, 2026
Host/Investigator: Beth Shelburne
Podcast by: Lava for Good Podcasts

Overview of the Episode

In Chapter 5, "Anybody Will Do," journalist Beth Shelburne dives deep into the prosecution and trials that led to Toforest Johnson’s death sentence for the 1995 murder of Deputy William G. Hardy in Birmingham, Alabama. The episode exposes the shocking legal maneuverings, unreliable evidence, and grinding pressure on families as the state pursues convictions with shifting theories—seemingly determined to find someone, anyone, to blame. Through interviews, courtroom testimony, and poignant personal accounts, the episode questions how an innocent man could end up on Alabama’s death row, and why the system persists in denying justice.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Emergence of the "Earwitness" (03:21–08:43)

• The state’s prosecution relied almost solely on testimony of Violet Ellison, who claimed she overheard Toforest Johnson "confess" to the murder via a three-way jail phone call.
• Ellison’s initial report in 1995 was all but ignored for two years until the prosecution desperately needed evidence after their other key witness, Yolanda Chambers, began recanting.
  • Key moment: Violet Ellison's seven-minute recorded police interview forms the core of the state’s case, despite inconsistencies and her story including details matching public reports but not forensic evidence.
  • Quote (08:25): "Violet Ellison walk in that door and stand up on this table and say what she said. We got a full table now. We got all the evidence we need." – Beth Shelburne

2. Multiple Trials, Shifting Stories (08:43–22:08)

• The state ran four separate capital murder trials against Johnson and his co-accused, presenting contradictory theories each time.
• Physical evidence was virtually nonexistent; prosecution narratives shifted between who was supposedly the shooter (sometimes Johnson, sometimes others).
• Ardragas Ford, a co-defendant, was initially tried as the shooter; juries deadlocked in both his and Johnson's first trials.
  • Quote (19:10): "Our Dragis Ford wheeling up about 30ft of an incline in his wheelchair, somehow finding an ability to shoot two shots into Deputy Hardy... would have taken at least a minute or two, minimum." – Defense (Richard Jaffe or Darrell Bender)
• Acquittal required a unanimous verdict; deadlocks led to repeated re-trials rather than freedom for the accused.

3. Money, Legal Defense, and the System (13:19–15:47)

• Ford’s family raised over $40,000 to hire a top defense attorney, Richard Jaffe, through personal sacrifice and community fundraisers—a stark contrast to Toforest Johnson's court-appointed attorneys, limited by meager state caps.
  • Quote (14:50): "He told us right there... bring him a $10,000 retainer and he'll bring our loved one home. Of course. $10,000. He might as well say 10 million." – Antonio Green, Toforest’s cousin
• The disparity in defense resources proved crucial in shaping the outcomes for the two men.

4. Trials of Toforest Johnson & Decision to Convict (22:08–29:08, 31:40–39:59)

• At Johnson's first trial, the prosecution switched to claiming Toforest fired the fatal shot, using only Violet Ellison's earwitness testimony.
• Daisy Williams, who actually spoke with Johnson during the jail call, testified that Johnson never confessed—raising credibility issues with Ellison’s story.
  • Quote (21:36): "The only evidence supposedly they had against was this ear witness who had never heard him speak before... they just telling you he did it. It's pretty much it's all they had." – Antonio Green
• Both trials resulted in mistrials after non-unanimous juries. At Johnson’s second trial, fewer defense witnesses were called and crucial alibi testimony was omitted. The jury, believing Ellison, convicted Johnson (35:43).

5. The Death Sentence and Impact on Family (35:20–39:59)

• The penalty phase lasted only 80 minutes; the jury voted 10–2 for death, with Toforest’s mother and cousin pleading for his life.
  • Quote (37:30): "That's probably one of the hardest things I've ever had to do was get on that stand and beg for his life." – Antonio Green
• Johnson’s daughter, who was six at the time, describes her memories of seeing her father in court, not realizing it would be her last glimpse of him as a free man.

6. Flawed Defense Strategy & State Manipulation (41:49–48:19)

• Critical missteps by court-appointed defense: failing to call alibi witnesses in the retrial, and inexplicably calling Yolanda Chambers—whose testimony placed Johnson at the crime scene.
  • Quote (45:53): "Why would you call the only person on the planet who will testify under Oath that your client was there, you know, and lie. I mean, knowing they're lying about it." – Derek Drennan, attorney witness to the trial
• The prosecution capitalizes, shifting witnesses and theories trial by trial—seeking conviction by any means.

7. Five Different, Incompatible Theories—Prosecutorial Overreach (50:59–58:33)

• Prosecutor Jeff Wallace puts forward five different, mutually exclusive theories between trials.
  • Quote (55:14): "This case is all about alternative worlds that are in conflict with each other and in conflict with truth and in conflict with what our justice system stands for." – Richard Jaffe
• Wallace defends his shifting positions as simply following the evidence, but is forced to admit the evidence supported only one shooter, undermining his own arguments.
  • Quote (58:00): "I now wish I'd been a little more yielding sometimes, wish I'd seen a little more gray. But I was fairly black and white, and I'm afraid I was fairly mean. And I'm not necessarily proud of that." – Jeff Wallace

8. The Aftermath and Reflection (58:33–end)

• After his conviction, Toforest Johnson is sent to Holman Prison’s death row, isolated and terrified, as executions take place around him.
  • Quote (58:49): "The victim's family deserve to know what happened to their loved one. But they, they get no, no justice, no peace out of a wrongful conviction. You know, and this is simply a case of just anybody or do." – Beth Shelburne

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "Violet Ellison walk in that door and stand up on this table... We got all the evidence we need."
  – Beth Shelburne (08:25)

• "Our Dragis Ford wheeling up about 30ft of an incline in his wheelchair... Then be wheeled down by someone all the way back to their car."
  – Defense Attorney (19:10)

• "[Prosecutors] had a powerful tool at their disposal. The ability to use multiple theories to get the outcome. They were seeking someone to go down for Hardy's murder."
  – Narrator (54:10)

• "No prosecutors should be allowed to, in any case, much less a death penalty case, to try two different defendants for the same crime using a different theory and different sets of witnesses, as if they're staging two Broadway plays of the same scenario."
  – Richard Jaffe (Defense Attorney) (54:45)

• "This case is all about alternative worlds that are in conflict with each other and in conflict with truth and in conflict with what our justice system stands for."
  – Richard Jaffe (55:14)

• "I now wish I'd been a little more yielding sometimes, wish I'd seen a little more gray. But I was fairly black and white, and I'm afraid I was fairly mean. And I'm not necessarily proud of that."
  – Jeff Wallace (58:00)

Critical Timestamps for Reference

• 03:21–08:43: Introduction of Violet Ellison’s testimony and her belated importance to the prosecution.
• 14:50: Family efforts and sacrifice to pay for Ford’s private attorney.
• 19:10: Defense exposes implausibility of wheelchair narrative.
• 21:36: Antonio Green on observing the court’s bias.
• 35:20–39:59: Sentencing phase—Toforest’s family and emotional courtroom scenes.
• 45:53–47:13: Legal experts question baffling defense strategy.
• 54:45–55:14: Richard Jaffe’s condemnation of the prosecution's approach.
• 58:00–58:33: Prosecutor Jeff Wallace’s self-reflection.

Episode Tone and Takeaway

With scrupulous reporting and poignant testimonies, this episode conveys a sense of outrage at systemic injustice—where procedural technicalities, prosecutorial ambition, and insufficient defense converge to send an innocent man to death row. The voices of family, witnesses, and attorneys paint a picture of a system more interested in closing a case than delivering truth. The repeated refrain: in this courtroom, with so little evidence, "anybody will do."

For anyone wondering how wrongful convictions happen in America, “Anybody Will Do” is a chilling, necessary listen.