Lava for Good’s critically acclaimed Wrongful Conviction podcast, co-hosted by celebrated criminal justice reform advocate and founding board member of the Innocence Project Jason Flom, and Pulitzer prize-winning podcast host and producer Maggi

Episode 8 | Bondage to the Law

Oct 31st, 2023 50m 55s

Episode 8 of 8In a rare and remarkable move, the current Jefferson County District Attorney, Danny Carr, has asked the court to throw out Toforest’s conviction and order a new trial. The original prosecutor, Jeff Wallace, joined Carr’s call to

Episode 7 | Messy

Oct 24th, 2023 46m 38s

Episode 7 of 8The original trial prosecutor, Jeff Wallace, begins to doubt Violet Ellison's credibility several years after Toforest's conviction. Beth embarks on an investigative journey to examine Ellison's credibility, and discovers that El

Episode 6 | Misfiled

Oct 17th, 2023 54m 51s

Episode 6 of 8Beth unravels disturbing revelations about the State’s handling of Violet Ellison, the earwitness whose testimony forms the backbone of the case against Toforest. She tracks the tenacious investigative work of Toforest’s lawyers

Episode 5 | Anybody Will Do

Oct 10th, 2023 1h 5m

Episode 5 of 8Beth combs through the trial transcripts to understand how Toforest was convicted of Deputy Hardy’s murder with no physical evidence. During the trial, the State introduces a new witness - the earwitness. Violet Ellison claims sh

Episode 4 | Witness or Defendant

Oct 3rd, 2023 54m 41s

Episode 4 of 8Beth examines the Hardy murder file in order to fully understand the investigation. She discovers a pattern of tunnel vision, willful disbelief of alibi witnesses, and a reliance on coercive interview tactics that suggest if witn

Episode 3 | Police Girl

Sep 26th, 2023 42m 33s

Episode 3 of 8After learning that Yolanda Chambers changed her story hundreds of times and admitted to perjury, Beth sets out to understand Chambers’ motivations. Is she a villain or a victim? Beth tracks down her mother, who has never spoken

Episode 2 | Don't Know Diddly

Sep 19th, 2023 46m 30s

Episode 2 of 8Beth trains her focus on the days immediately following the murder, beginning with recordings of police interrogations of key witnesses. Yolanda Chambers, a 15-year-old girl, places Toforest at the scene of the murder. But Beth f

Episode 1 | Behind the Crown

Sep 19th, 2023 42m 1s

Episode 1 of 8Journalist Beth Shelburne meets with former Alabama Attorney General Bill Baxley, who explains why he is deeply disturbed by the wrongful conviction of Toforest Johnson for the murder of Deputy Bill Hardy. Through her reporting o

Trailer

Introducing: Earwitness

Sep 12th, 2023 2m 44s

One July night in 1995, Deputy Sheriff William G. Hardy was shot behind the Crown Sterling Suites hotel in Birmingham, Alabama. At the same time as the murder, at least ten people saw Toforest Johnson four miles away, at a popular nightclub cal

Rate