WILSON -- James Johnson had his first court appearance on new charges Friday.

Earlier this week, a special prosecutor dropped murder, kidnapping, and rape charges against him. He had already spent more than three years in jail, waiting to go on trial for those charges. He's now only charged with accessory after the fact of murder in connection to the killing of Brittany Willis in 2004.

“While I'm greatly relieved that I'm cleared of all the charges that I have faced for the last 3.5 years, I fully understand that the battle's not over,” said Johnson at a news conference following his court appearance.

Johnson's friend, Kenneth Meeks, had confessed to killing Willis back in 2004. He’s serving a life sentence in jail. Johnson says shortly after the murder, Meeks told him about it and took him to the crime scene.

Johnson's family has said he did help Meeks clean the car after he kidnapped and killed Willis. But Johnson's family insists it was only because he was afraid of Meeks and feared for his life.

Johnson's supporters say that doesn’t make him an accessory to murder.

“Ask yourself, ‘what would I have done?’” James’ father, Arthur Johnson said. “Me personally, I would have changed the oil if [Meeks] asked me to.”

“Accessory after the fact means you help somebody escape, you help somebody avoid prosecution,” explained Alan McSureley, attorney and Legal Redress Chair for the NC Chapter of the NAACP.

Johnson’s supporters say he did the exact opposite by turning Meeks in to police.

“He was not there when the crime occurred,” said Rev. Dr. William Barber, II, president of the NC Chapter of the NAACP. “He had no knowledge there was going to be a crime. When he found out, after getting over the initial trauma, James did the right thing. James identified the killer.”

“I'm not guilty of involvement in any of this that happened 3.5 years ago,” Johnson said, “and I stand before you today, still not guilty of any involvement.”

In court, Johnson reserved the right to ask for a court appointed attorney if his family decides not to hire a private attorney.

Two friends of Willis' family were in the courtroom Friday, but they did not choose to talk to reporters.

Johnson's next court date is Jan. 4 for his probable cause hearing.

Members of the NAACP also announced Friday they will hold a special service of support for Johnson on Sunday, Jan. 13. The time and location have not been set yet. The service will raise money for Johnson's legal defense fund.