"In this country, there is no justice for the poor," words of a WI activist. We have been working with prisoners for 10 years now and have learned first hand about our assembly-line justice. Here Are some of the stories. Please contact FFUP or contact the prisoners themselves if you have questions or would like to see documentation. Email us at swansol@mwt.net .
Jimmie Johnson 328433
GBCI; PO Box 19033; Green Bay, Wi 54307
Case no.2000CF005118
Cry for Help.
I just had one of my appeals denied by the court of appeals involving the newly discovered evidence that I received. The courts claims that they agreed that the newly discovered evidence is valid but they don't believe if I was given a new trial the jury would believe the person who is testifying with this evidence which is showing that I was not the person who committed the crime that I'm in here for.
I put myself here by signing a false confession which lead to my conviction. What I really need from you is some help on .. gaining some national attention on my case. The city of Milwaukee knows I've been wrongly accused of the double homocide charge and
even after 11 years of claiming my innocence someone came forward with information on who is the real suspect of the crime I'm in here for. The city of Milwaukee is trying to sweep my case under the rug when we all knows how often our criminal justice system in Wisconsin wrongfully convicted many people due to false confession and mistaken identity or different illegal tactics the Milwaukee detectives use to gain convictions, which they used on me. I do not want to die in here for something I did not do.
"Innocent Man Caught-Up Within Wisconsin's Unjust Criminal System"
36 year old wrongly convicted man languishes within Wisconsin's prison system despite having newly discovered evidence of his innocence. Jimmie Johnson III was convicted in a Milwaukee court of two counts of First degree reckless homocide. Despite what appeared to be an open and shut case against Johnson, evidence surfaced which suggest that another man actually committed the crime. Despite this evidence, the state prosecutors continue to hinder a new trial for Johnson. In a recent decision by the Wisconsin court of appeals/ District 1, Johnson was denied a new trial despite having proved 4 of the 5 criterias required for a new trial based on newly discov¬ered evidence.
Johnson's newly discovered evidence consisted of an investigative re¬port taken by a private investigator from the Badger State Investigative Services/LLC. Within that report the investigator attributes the following statement from unbias witness;
"Andre saw Kevin backing away from a crowd of people outside the tavern with his arm extended out, holding out his gun, and he was pointing it at the crowd".
"Andre said he was upset that Kevin shot people and shot them for no reason".
"Through the years kevin bragged about shooting the people at the bar numerous times to Andre"
"Finally Andre came up with an idea to get his family involved in search for the convicted person for the crime that Andre's friend committed. Andre is very much concerned about getting the truth out, but does not want to get in trouble for not bringing it out years ago."
What I really need is some support to help me gain a new trial to prove my innocence so I can continue my life on the streets as a free man. If any has any comments or suggestion towards helping me regain my life back will you please contact me and share your thoughts or ideas with me. Until then I will be here fighting till my last breathe. Thank you for your time and hopefully someone can be of help to help me regain a new trial to prove that Jimmie Johnson III is an innocent man suffering behind these prison walls.
TRABSCRIPT OF INVESTIGATION BELOW, documents follow
Badger State Investigative Services, LLC
INVESTIGATIVE REPORT
TO: Jeffrey Jensen
FROM: Cindy Papka
RE: State of Wisconsin vs.Jimmy Johnson
DATE: July 6,2008
INTERVIEW: Andre Hill
On June 18, 2008 I interviewed Andre Hill, who is currently incarcerated at the Waupun Correctional Institution. Andre is currently incarcerated for a drug case. He has been incarcerated for 2 1/2 years and has eight more years to go on his sentence.
Andre had been a friend of a set of twins, Kevin L. Smith and Keith L. Smith, DOB 10-18-79. Andre's brothers, Delano and Courtney, had also been acquainted with the twins.
Andre said in the past he has considered Kevin his best friend, and they went to high school together at Bay View. They were very close for about five years prior to the shooting incident at the Cream City Tavern, which he believes occurred in September /October of 2000, but did not know the exact date. Andre stated he has not had contact with Kevin Smith for the past five years.
On the night of the shootings at the Cream City Tavern, Andre said he had gone to the tavern with Kevin L. Smith. On the way to the tavern, Kevin told Andre that he had a gun with him that night. The gun was a 380, and Andre believes it was black. Andre said this was a gun that Kevin had been carrying around with him for a couple of months before the incident. Andre did not know where Kevin had got the gun.
They arrived at the bar around midnight. They parked facing north on the street next to the bar (east side of bar), which was located on 53rd and Center Street. Andre said he had driven that night, and his car was a gray Chevy Caprice Classic, 1988 model.
Andre said their intention was to go to the bar to have a good time and to have a few drinks. When they got inside the bar, Andre stayed by the bar and Kevin walked around mingling with people. About a half hour to an hour or so later, Kevin came back
by the bar, and Andre noticed Kevin was drunk and highly impaired. Kevin told Andre that he had just got into it with some people". Andre told him something like, "O.K. Just chill". Andre said he had not seen Kevin get into any confrontations with anyone.
The bar began closing, and Andre and Kevin walked out of the bar together. There was also a large crowd of people walking out at the same time. The tavern was closing down for the night. Kevin was making comments that he was so sick of this. Andre did not know what Kevin was talking about. Kevin had said something like, "These guys think I'm soft, I'm tired of this, go to the car."
As they walked out the door, Andre headed to the corner east of the tavern, and started "hugging up" with a girl on the corner. They were on the northwest corner of the intersection. Andre did not know this girl, but was trying to get her phone number. Andre was not really paying attention to where Kevin was. Andre was with the girl for about a minute or so, talking and hugging.
As Andre was talking and hugging up with the girl, he heard around seven gunshots ring out. Andre said he and the girl ducked down, and Andre turned around to look to where he heard the shots coming from. Andre saw Kevin backing away from a crowd of people outside the tavern with his arm extended out, holding out his gun, and he was pointing it at the crowd. Kevin was moving backwards towards Andre. Kevin was facing west, and backing up towards the east.
Kevin was saying something like, "I'm not a hoe, I told ya'all, I'm not a hoe." Andre was yelling, "What's going on, What's going on?" Kevin then ran towards Andre's car, and Andre was wondering why is he running towards my car. Andre then took off running to his car and jumped into the driver's seat. Kevin was then yelling, "go, go, go". Andre was thinking, "Oh my God1.
Andre drove around the corner and headed to Keith's (Kevin's twin) house, which was about four blocks away. When they got there, Kevin and Andre went inside. Keith and his girl friend were sleeping, and they woke Keith up. Kevin was talking real loud. Andre told Keith, "Your brother just did some real dumb shit".
Kevin had taken on a proud stance and bragging attitude about what he had done and was talking real loud, so Keith had them all go outside.
Andre said "Man what did you do that for?" Kevin was saying, "I told them, I'm no hoe". .."just shot in a crowd. ...had nobody in mind. ..I'm tired of feeling like a hoe, ...I had to show I'm not soft... I'm not a hoe".
As they were talking, they heard a lot of ambulances and sirens in the neighborhood, and Andre and Keith said to each other, "This is serious". After about ten, minutes, Andre and Kevin left Keith's house. Andre then dropped Kevin off at his house.
Andre said he was upset that Kevin shot people and shot them for no reason.Andre had known that people had been injured, and said he felt bad that he did not do anything about what he knew at the time. He said he should of used better judgment at the time.
The next day, Andre went into a barbershop located at 45th and Center, and Kevin was already in the barbershop. Kevin was looking scared. He was sober and not drunk. As they were in the barbershop the news came on, or people were talking about the shooting. That is when Andre heard that people were killed.
Andre said he looked at Kevin and could see that Kevin looked real scared. Andre said he was scared also. Andre said this was Kevin's crime, and he was not going to take any blame, because he had nothing to do with it.
The news accounts said there were no suspects, and Andre waited to hear if any names were mentioned. After that, Andre stopped listening to the news.
A day or two later, Andre and Kevin were leaving the parking lot Bouchard's Sporting Goods located on North 3rd and State Streets, in downtown Milwaukee. Kevin said , "I got this on me". Andre asked him "What you got on you?" Kevin told him, "The gun".
Andre said, "What are you doing!" Andre was real upset that Kevin had brought the gun into his car. Kevin told Andre to pull over. Andre pulled over and could see that Kevin had put the gun inside a sock. Kevin said , "I need to get rid of this". Kevin jumped out of the car and ran behind a restaurant that had outside seating on the Milwaukee River. Andre saw Kevin toss the sock with the gun into the river.
Kevin then ran back to the car, and they drove away.A couple of days later, Andre said he was scared about what had happened, and confided in his brother, Delano Hill, telling him what Kevin had done.
In 2000, Andre's brother had been at the HOC, and had heard something about someone being charged with the Cream City Tavern shootings. Andre said he did not believe this was true, because he knew that Kevin had done the shootings and had not been arrested, but he did keep the information in the back of his mind.
Through the years, Kevin has bragged about shooting the people at the bar numerous times to Andre. One time Andre and Kevin were driving to Memphis, TN, and they had taken a camcorder on the trip. As they drove down there, Andre recorded Kevin admitting to the shooting. Kevin was bragging about what he had done. Andre believes this was in 2003 or 2004. Andre no longer has the videotape though. It was left in the camcorder, and his cousin had taken the camcorder to Detroit. *
Kevin bragged about the shootings approximately thirty different times, usually when he was drunk. When Kevin was sober, it bothered Kevin. Kevin would say, "but I ain't loosing any sleep over this".
There were other people around sometimes when Kevin confessed. Those people were Delano Hill, Courtney Hill, Keith Smith, and a guy named Charles L/N/U, but this Charles is currently incarcerated in Waupun Correctional.
Kevin would always make comments about how he was tired of being bullied and he wanted a tough guy image. Andre believes Kevin talked freely and bragged to him (Andre) about the shootings, because they were such close friends. Kevin figured that Andre would never tell on him. Andre said Kevin was also so comfortable talking about the shooting, because he thought nothing would ever happen to him. The longer that time went on, the more confident Kevin became in his bragging and attitude about the shootings.
Sometime in 2003, Kevin was a suspect in a homicide case and had been questioned by the police. The homicide occurred around 36th and Center. The police came to Kevin's house on several occasions, and one of those times the police found drugs and Kevin was criminally charged.
Around the time Kevin was going to be sentenced for that case, one day the sheriffs dept. pulled Andre over and told Andre they had been looking for him. The Sheriff took Andre to jail and he bailed out after his arrest. Andre then rented a house to sell drugs out of. Andre told Kevin about getting pulled over and about getting the house. Andre also told Kevin about the rental car he (Andre) was driving. Then about a week later, Kevin went to his sentencing.
With in a day or so, Andre was sleeping at his new house when the house was raided. There was paperwork with the house address on it and a description of the rental car Andre was driving, and the only person who knew about both of those things was Kevin. In the paperwork it also mentioned a C.I. but Kevin's name was not mentioned. Andre believes Kevin was the C.I. From that point on, Andre only saw Kevin occasionally, and currently does not have any contact with him.
Andre said the twins have a stained relationship with each other and believes Keith would tell the truth about what happened the night Kevin and Andre came to his house after the shootings.
Through the years, Andre has made several attempts to get this information out. While he was going through his own recent drug cases, he tolcl his atty. about what he knew around October of 2005.
The atty. (Mike Steinle) later told Andre to write to a detective, which he did. Information came back to Andre that the detective was not interested in the information because someone was already convicted for the case. Andre said he wrote a letter to a detective also, but never heard back from him. He believes this was around October of 2006. Andre was surprised to learn that someone had been convicted of the shootings, and wanted to get the truth out.
Finally Andre came up with an idea to get his family involved in his search for the convicted person. Andre sent his brother to the library to do research on the case and try and find out who was the person that was convicted of this. His brother searched for over a week, and finally gave Andre the name of Jimmy Johnson.
Andre then wrote to Jimmy letting him know he had information about the case.
Andre is very much concerned about getting the truth out, but does not want to get in trouble for not bringing it out for years ago.
Andre said he has no problem with being in prison right now. It was sort of a blessing and a wake up call for him to be incarcerated. He has done a lot of growing up and incarceration is helping him get his life together.
Badger State Investigative Services, LLC
P.O. Box 20817, Milwaukee, WI 53220-0817; Tel: 414-282-5282; Fax: 414-282-5239;
E-mail:badgefstate(g),wi.tr.com
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