Left: Joseph Carroll (WSOC). Right: Casey Johnson (Carter Funeral Home).
A man from North Carolina is sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering his girlfriend’s 15-year-old son by repeatedly slamming his head against the floor while the victim’s younger sister witnessed the act.
Joseph Ray Carroll, aged 54, was found guilty of first-degree murder along with two charges of felony child abuse for the death of Casey Johnson in 2021 in Rockingham, which is roughly 70 miles away from Charlotte. He received a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
“I cannot adequately express the horrors these children experienced at the hands of this defendant,” stated Richmond County District Attorney Jamie Adams in a press release. “As a career prosecutor, I have never encountered a case like this one. It has forever changed these children, the jurors, court personnel, and this community. These children expressed relief that the person responsible for killing their brother has been held accountable.”
Initially, Casey’s mother, Michelle Johnson, admitted to injuring her son on January 20, 2021. However, prosecutors showed jurors a video of Carroll coaching her on aligning their stories, according to a courtroom account from the Richmond Observer. Charges against Johnson for murder were dropped in favor of accessory after the fact and felony child abuse, with sentencing still pending.
A child abuse expert compared the severity of Casey’s injuries to those sustained in a car accident, as reported by local ABC affiliate WSOC. Carroll allegedly subjected Casey and his two younger sisters to sleep and food deprivation, beatings, and waterboarding over a span of two years.
During her closing arguments, Adams said much of what the jurors had witnessed was awful.
“A lot of what you’ve seen, you’re not going to be able to unsee,” she reportedly said.
Before sentencing, one of Casey’s sisters addressed the court.
“I struggle with words to say,” she said, according to the Observer. “Joe made us so weak so that we couldn’t fight back.”
She said Carroll “took my family and ripped it into shreds.”
Following these events, the two sisters are now under the care of their aunt and uncle. Their aunt mentioned that she believes Casey would be satisfied with the verdict since it ensures his sisters’ safety.
“I think, because [Casey] was such a protector of his sisters, that knowing how they are right now, and how safe and loved and protected they are … that it wasn’t for nothing and he got his sisters out of there,” Jennifer Jefferson said.
As for Carroll, he got exactly what he deserved.
“You are proving exactly who you are,” she said.
