On the morning of Mother's Day, May 8, 2022, a domestic dispute at a residence in Savannah, Georgia, ended in tragedy. Police responded to a call at approximately 10:35 a.m. at a home in the 900 block of East 33rd Street, which belonged to the victim's parents. Inside, they discovered Vernita Johnson, a 57-year-old Black woman, who had died from a gunshot wound.
Homicide detectives immediately began an investigation at the scene.
After conducting interviews, they identified a family member as the suspect. That same day, police arrested Ms. Johnson’s brother, 59-year-old Jeffery Johnson, and charged him with murder in connection with her death. He was transported to the Chatham County Detention Center to await legal proceedings.
In the wake of the killing, family and friends mourned the loss of Vernita Michelle Johnson. Funeral services were held for her on Tuesday, May 17, 2022, at Southside Baptist Church. She was laid to rest at Greenwich Cemetery.
The prosecution of Jeffery Johnson has since been complicated by legal proceedings concerning his fitness to stand trial. In November 2024, the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office clarified that the murder case against him remains open, after some official records had erroneously marked it as closed. This discrepancy came to public attention when police body camera footage of the incident was mistakenly released. According to the district attorney and Johnson’s public defender, the case is on the court’s incompetency docket. As of November 2024, Jeffery Johnson remains in custody at the Chatham County Jail, awaiting trial while proceedings to determine his competency continue.
