Second autopsy of teen found dead upside down in wrestling mats reveals it may have been MURDER after all

A second autopsy performed on the body of a 17-year-old Georgia high school wrestler found dead in a rolled-up gym mat in January has found that his death resulted from non-accidental blunt-force trauma.

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

The independent report, which was released by experts hired by Kendrick Johnson's family, directly contradicts the results of an autopsy performed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which named positional asphyxia as the cause of death.

The Lowndes County Sheriff's Office ruled the 17-year-old's death an accident, saying that the Lowndes high School student became lodged inside a rolled-up mat after falling in while reaching for a shoe.

His body was discovered on the moing of January 11 in the high school's gym after his parents reported him missing the night before. 

Now, attoey Chevene King, who represents the boy's family, has sent the new autopsy report cited by CNN to the U.S. Department of Justice-Civil Rights Division, the GBI, the U.S. Attoey for Georgia’s Middle District and the Lowndes County Coroner for review.

The next step in the case would be to call a coroner's inquest to decide the cause of death in a process resembling a grand jury.

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT These gruesome photos handed to CNN by the Johnson family attoey show Kendrick's body wrapped in the mat (left), and his swollen, grotesquely misshapen face (right)

Evidence: This sneaker was discovered next to the teen's body in the gym. It has been suggested that he fell into the mat while reaching for it

After noticing inconsistencies in the first autopsy report, the Johnson family asked a judge for permission to exhume their son's body and conduct another autopsy - a request that  was granted in May.

Kendrick's body was scrutinized June 15 by the Florida-based forensic expert Dr William Anderson, who concluded that the teenager died from blunt force trauma to the right neck and soft tissues, 'consistent with inflicted injury.'

The results of the independent autopsy appear to dovetail with the report written by EMTs who first examined Kendrick’s' body on January 11, 2013, which indicated that they observed 'bruising' to the right side jaw.

The first responders' findings, however, were later refuted by subsequent reports filed by the crime lab that handled the case and the GBI's autopsy, which cited no significant injuries.

A spokesperson for the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the agency stands by its report after reviewing the findings of the independent autopsy.

But the GBI autopsy found no signs of a struggle, officials said.

It has been suggested by investigators that Johnson may have been reaching for a shoe that had fallen into the mat.

A shoe was found at the scene, but it is not known whether it belonged to Kendrick.

'We feel like he was trying to reach a shoe that was down that hole,' the sheriff told the Valdosta Daily Times, adding that no one knows for sure why he reached into the mat 'but him and the good Lord.'

Lingering questions: Kendrick's parents have questioned the official autopsy report, suspecting that their son was murdered

Second try: The Johnson family asked for and received permission to exhume their son's body for another autopsy in June

Harrowing discovery: The teen's body was found in the old gym at Lowndes High School in the south Georgia town of Valdosta