An FBI agent and his wife have filed a $5 million defamation lawsuit against the publisher of Ebony magazine and writer Frederic Rosen for stories associating their sons with the death of Kendrick Johnson.

The civil libel and slander complaint was filed by Rick and Karen Bell of Valdosta Wednesday in the U.S. District Court in Brunswick over a series of stories about the Johnson case that appeared on the website Ebony.com between Aug. 12, 2013, and April 9, 2014.

The suit accused Ebony owner Johnson Publishing Company and Rosen, author of several so-called true crime novels, with publishing false claims that Kendrick Johnson was murdered — and, through the use of thinly-veiled pseudonyms, that their sons were suspects in the death.

Johnson’s body was found upside down in a rolled-up gym mat at Lowndes High School in January of 2013. A state autopsy ruled his death accidental. But Johnson’s parents insist their 17-year-old son was the victim of foul play. A federal grand jury is currently reviewing the case.

The Bells claim that the fictitious Chris and Clark Martin named in a Nov. 19, 2013, article on Ebony.com was really a reference to their sons, also students at the high school. The suit said the sons were threatened with “bodily harm and ostracized” by other students, including with postings on social media, in the aftermath of the article.

In February, Karen Bell spoke with The Daily Times about her frustration with the articles and the rumors that her sons were involved with Johnson’s death.

“If you dare to stand up for what is truthful, you become a target for bullying and harassment,” said Bell. “I should not have to be quiet.”

Bell maintained in that interview that neither of her sons were near the old gym when Johnson was last seen on surveillance video. The investigative case file on Johnson’s death includes documents stating the older brother was on a bus traveling to a wrestling tournament in Macon and the younger brother in class on the other side of the school at the time. 

The Bells claim Johnson Publishing and Rosen made no effort to verify the brothers’ presence elsewhere or lack of involvement in the Johnson death case before publishing the articles on Ebony.com. 

The suit also states that Rosen used an anonymous email sent to the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office in January as the basis for allegations in an April 9 Ebony.com article that the younger Bell brother killed Johnson out of a jealous rage after learning Johnson had sexual intercourse with his girlfriend.

The sheriff’s office said it did not regard the email as credible, and 13 days before that article was published, the originator of the anonymous email recanted her story. In a March 27 interview with The Daily Times, the teenage girl said the email only contained rumors she thought might be true, given the speculation in the media, especially Ebony.com and CNN, regarding the circumstances of the Johnson case.

Without explanation, Ebony.com removed all of Rosen’s Kendrick Johnson articles from its website on May 5 after the Bells sent Johnson Publishing and Rosen letters demanding retraction of the articles and payment for damages on April 18.

The Bells are seeking at least $3 million in compensatory damages for what they called libelous statements made in the series of articles.

The suit also alleges that Johnson Publishing and Rosen are responsible for slanderous statements Rosen made during radio, television and online interviews in which he discussed the Johnson case. The suit asks for at least $1 million in damages for slander.

In addition, the Bells ask for at least $1 million in punitive damages, contending Johnson Publishing and Rosen falsely accused them of conspiracy to cover up a murder and falsely accused their sons of murder or being an accomplice to murder.

Brice Ladson, a Richmond Hill attorney, is representing the Bells in the lawsuit. Rick Bell has been an FBI agent based in Georgia for several years.