Myers' mother works to clear son's name

On a quest to exonerate her imprisoned son, Jodie Myers says she has lost faith in the justice system she once thought was meant to protect her.\nJodie, whose son John Myers II was convicted of the May 2000 killing IU sophomore Jill Behrman, has begun publicly criticizing the processes through which her son was condemned.\nJohn Myers II was convicted last October in a case that has been decried by some as unjust. Questions of improper juror behavior arose over allegations that jury members consumed excessive amounts of alcohol during the trial.\nWith a guilty verdict found within 45 minutes of beginning deliberations in a case that Jodie Myers and others have called more complex than the near-immediate verdict would suggest, she said she has to work to prove her son's innocence because she said she knew John was incapable of murder. \nBesides the distress it causes her to have a son imprisoned because of what she calls an "unfair" investigation and trial, she has mourned a husband's death to cancer and another son's deployment to Iraq since Behrman was murdered.\n"I believe I certainly must have a special place in heaven, because I have been through hell on Earth," she said, sitting in her family's living room, where she lives with John Myers II's 11-year-old daughter.\nBut even before the indictment, she said the investigation was conducted in an unfair fashion -- one she said set out to prove her son's guilt rather than examine all the facts. When the lead investigator, Detective Rick Lang of the Indiana State Police, first came to interview her about their interest in her son as a suspect, she said Lang told her after he turned off his tape recorder, "I'll lie to get what I need."\nLang adamantly denied any wrongdoing in the case, saying it was "absolutely not true" he told her he was willing to lie.\n"She knows what the truth is herself," Lang said. "Anything she is saying would not surprise me."\nLang said that John Myers II received a fair trial and that Jodie Myers' suggestions otherwise were just a mother's attempt at protecting her son.\n"She has been trying to protect Johnny all his life," \nhe said.\n'Justice for John'\nSome might question why, if John Myers II is innocent as his mother says, did so many presume his guilt? After seven years on the case, Jodie Myers said the police, the courts and the community were simply tired of hearing and thinking about Behrman's death. Those involved were ready to move on. After investigating other suspects before her son, Lang and others just wanted to put somebody in prison -- regardless of whether they were guilty, she said. \nAnd because of his dirty track record, including charges of battery and receiving stolen property, she said he was an easy target for the authorities.\nBut Jodie Myers said her work is just beginning. About a month ago, she and her team of about 15 launched a Web site, www.justiceforjohnsite.com, which has already received about 11,000 hits. \nThe site presents arguments why they believe her son is innocent and provides a space where users can post thoughts on the case.\n"There was no proof," one visitor said, referring to the case's lack of physical evidence. \n"I just wanted you to know that I'm praying for you and I am praying for justice for John and Jill," wrote another.\nReligious messages such as Bible verses in bold lettering appear throughout the site, demonstrating Jodie Myers' faith -- something she said has been unshakable throughout the entire ordeal. \n"God allows everything to happen for a purpose," she said, "so even in pain and in the tears, I continue to rely on God and my strength comes from Him."\nA family divided \nMuch strength has been demanded from her during the past few years as she said she has watched her family crumble -- caused largely in part by a testimony against John Myers II by Jodie Myers' mother, Betty Swafford.\nAfter the trial jurors said Swafford's testimony about a November 2004 conversation she had with her grandson was a major reason they voted to convict.\n"(John) said, 'Grandma, if you just knew the things on my mind ... If the authorities knew, I'd spend the rest of my life in prison,' Swafford said under oath. "He said, 'My dad knew, and he took it to the grave with him.'"\nJodie Myers said the conversation was taken out of context. Her son, she said, was referring to numerous mistakes made throughout his life, not one specifically, as the testimony suggested. Since the statement and Swafford's estrangement from the family, Jodie Myers said the healing process with her mother has begun and she has forgiven Swafford for what she believes to be an unfair deposition.\n"It has caused a riff," Jodie Myers said. "And I don't know how that is going to heal."\nBut even beyond Swafford's testimony, Richard Swinney, who was related to John Myers II by marriage at the time of Behrman's murder, also testified against him. Swinney said the two had gone hunting together in the woods where Behrman's body was later found.\nBut Jodie Myers said Swinney lied to the court -- acknowledging this was a very serious accusation -- because she said she knew John only ever went hunting with his father.\n"(Swinney) is from a different world," Jodie Myers said, adding that "he got his 10 minutes of fame." \nIf Jodie Myers is right, and if appeals filed by the defense team are won, the question -- surely to the dismay of the Behrman family -- once again becomes: Who killed Jill Behrman?\nJodie Myers said she has her suspects but would not name them while the defense prepared to file an appeal, saying she thought Behrman's killer was under the investigators' noses.\n"I have a fear for my own safety," she said. "There are people out there who don't want the truth to come out."\nAbove all else, she vowed this case is not over. Even with a verdict wrought, she said she would fight on until her son is freed. \n"When I go out now, I go out with a different purpose," she said. "I go out to exonerate my son -- to find the truth"