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Alabama governor commutes death sentence of Toforest Johnson to life without parole

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 11 outlets. No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered it yet.

12 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

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Image via The Washington TimesHow images are chosenReport this image

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey has commuted the death sentence of Toforest Johnson to life in prison without parole. Johnson was convicted over the 1995 killing of Jefferson County Deputy Sheriff William Hardy, who was shot twice in the head while working off-duty security at a hotel. Ivey cited doubts about the evidence in the case, and outlets on both sides report those doubts. The New York Times reports that a key witness was paid $5,000 by the state. Ivey said her decision was not a declaration that Johnson is innocent. Johnson has maintained that he did not commit the killing, and his attorneys say the fight for a new trial continues.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

  1. Governor Kay Ivey commuted Toforest Johnson’s death sentence to life in prison without parole.

    Across the spectrumReported byLeft5Right3Far Right3See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, The Guardian, TheGrio
    Right
    The Washington Times, New York Post, Daily Mail
    Far Right
    Just the News, Fox News, The Epoch Times

  2. Johnson was convicted over the 1995 killing of Jefferson County Deputy Sheriff William Hardy.

    Across the spectrumReported byLeft5Right3Far Right3See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, The Guardian, TheGrio
    Right
    The Washington Times, New York Post, Daily Mail
    Far Right
    Just the News, Fox News, The Epoch Times

  3. Ivey cited doubts about the evidence in the case.

    Across the spectrumReported byLeft5Right2Far Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, The Guardian, TheGrio
    Right
    The Washington Times, New York Post
    Far Right
    Fox News, The Epoch Times

  4. A key witness in the conviction was reported to have been paid $5,000 by the state.

    One outletThe New York Times· Left

  5. Ivey said the commutation is not a declaration that Johnson is innocent.

    One outletTheGrio· Left

  6. Johnson maintains he did not commit the killing, and his attorneys say the fight for a new trial continues.

    Reported byLeft1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    TheGrio
    Far Right
    Fox News

What is contested

Where accounts differ

Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.

  • The evidence used to convict Johnson was sufficient.

    Left-side outlets report the conviction rested on thin evidence, including testimony from a witness reportedly paid by the state. Ivey said she had reservations about the evidence. Right-side outlets report that doubts about the evidence have emerged, and Johnson’s attorneys say the case for a new trial continues.

  • Johnson is innocent of the killing.

    Johnson has consistently maintained that he did not commit the killing. Ivey said her decision was not a declaration that he is innocent, and the coverage does not report a finding of innocence.

How each side tells it

Compare views

Outlets on both sides report that Governor Kay Ivey commuted Toforest Johnson’s death sentence over doubts about the evidence. Left-side coverage stresses thin evidence and doubts about the conviction, while right-side coverage stresses the change in sentence and Johnson’s continuing fight for a new trial.

  • the left

    5 outlets

    Left-side headlines lead with doubts about the evidence, using phrases such as thin evidence and questions about the conviction, and present the commutation as a response to those doubts.

    Alabama Governor Commutes a Death Sentence, Citing Thin Evidence
    The New York TimesLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    No coverage yet

    No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

  • the right

    6 outlets

    Far Right outlets report the commutation neutrally and cite doubts about the evidence; the Right-rated Daily Mail calls Johnson a convicted killer who evades execution.

    Alabama governor commutes death sentence as doubts emerge about evidence in murder conviction
    Fox NewsFar RightAll right-leaning headlines

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

  • Left0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Center

    Has not covered this story.

  • Right2

    Convicted killerevades execution

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded modifier

    Convicted killerMore neutral: Man convicted of murder

    Johnson was convicted at trial but maintains his innocence, so calling him a killer states the verdict as settled fact.

    Convicted killer who spent decades on death row evades execution after governor intervenes as…

    Used byDaily Mail (Right)

  • Loaded verb

    evades executionMore neutral: is spared execution

    Evades suggests escaping justice, while the governor commuted the sentence on stated grounds of evidence.

    Convicted killer who spent decades on death row evades execution after governor intervenes as questions swirl around the murder

    Used byDaily Mail (Right)

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

5 outlets

Leads with

  • thin evidence in the conviction
  • doubts about the evidence
  • prosecutors and former officials questioning the case
See the 5 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • TheGrioLeft

    Alabama governor spares Toforest Johnson after prosecutors, former officials question evidence behind conviction

    Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey commutes Toforest Johnson’s death sentence to life without parole amid concerns about evidence in his 1995

    Read at TheGrio (opens in a new tab)
  • The GuardianLeft

    Alabama governor commutes sentence of prisoner on death row

    Toforest Johnson’s death penalty reduced to life in prison without parole over doubts about his conviction Toforest Johnson, an Alabama death row inmate, will no longer face execution after the state’s Republican governor commuted his sentence amid increasing doubts about his …

    Read at The Guardian (opens in a new tab)
  • ABC NewsLeftAssociated Press report

    Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey spares death row inmate, citing doubts about evidence

    Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has commuted the death sentence of Toforest Johnson to life in prison without parole

    Read at ABC News (opens in a new tab)

    Also published by CBS News, New York Post and The Washington Times. It counts once.

  • The New York TimesLeft

    Alabama Governor Commutes a Death Sentence, Citing Thin Evidence

    Toforest Johnson’s conviction in the 1995 killing of a sheriff’s deputy relied on the testimony of a woman who was paid $5,000 by the state for providing information.

    Read at The New York Times (opens in a new tab)
  • CBS NewsLeftAssociated Press report

    Alabama governor commutes death sentence of man convicted of 1995 murder

    CBS News published a report that is shown in full at ABC News. The headline is the one CBS News gave it.

    Read at CBS News (opens in a new tab)

From the center

0 outlets

No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

From the right

6 outlets

Leads with

  • the governor’s commutation of the sentence
  • doubts emerging about the evidence
  • the attorneys’ continuing fight for a new trial
See the 6 headlines from the rightHide the headlines

Articles you open from here build My Mix, a private picture of how your reading spreads across the spectrum, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

  • Left

    First to report

    The New York Times, Oct 20, 3:56 PM EDT

  • Center

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Right

    2 hr 21 min later

    Its first report, Oct 20, 6:17 PM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The New York TimesLeftOct 20, 3:56 PM EDT
  2. ABC NewsLeftOct 20, 4:42 PM EDT
  3. CBS NewsLeftOct 20, 5:35 PM EDT
  4. The Washington TimesRightOct 20, 6:17 PM EDT
  5. The GuardianLeftOct 20, 7:18 PM EDT
  6. New York PostRightOct 20, 9:40 PM EDT
  7. Daily MailRightOct 21, 2:13 AM EDT
  8. Fox NewsFar RightOct 21, 2:44 AM EDT
  9. The Epoch TimesFar RightOct 21, 5:40 AM EDT
  10. TheGrioLeftOct 21, 9:38 AM EDT

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out. Just the News gave only a date, so it is not placed.

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