Jeffrey W. Johnson
Encyclopedia
Jeffrey W. Johnson is an incumbent
Associate Justice
of the California Court of Appeal
.
. He attended A.C. Flora High School and led a team to the South Carolina Debate Team Championship in 1977. He graduated A.C. Flora in 1978 with first honors. He attended Duke University as an Angier Biddle Duke Scholar, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts
degree with a double major in political science and history. In 1981, after receiving the A.B. Duke Scholarship, Johnson studied Politics, Philosophy, and Economics at Oxford University in Oxford, England. Johnson was President of his graduating class at Duke and received the President Terry Sanford Senior Leadership Award. He graduated in 1982 with honors.
Johnson earned his J.D. from Yale Law School in 1985. That same year, he was awarded the Gherini Prize for the best analytical paper in the discipline of International Law. While at Yale, Justice Johnson was a member of the law school's Discipline Policy Committee. He also served as a graduate affiliate of Silliman College, an undergraduate residential college within Yale College, and volunteered as a "big brother" through Yale's Dwight Hall Big Brother Adoption program.
From 1985 to 1989, Johnson worked as an associate with the Manatt Phelps law firm in Los Angeles. In 1989, he was appointed to the position of Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California. In 1994, Judge Johnson was appointed Deputy Chief in the Narcotics Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. For his work on a long-term wiretap investigation and prosecution of a nationwide crack cocaine and money laundering network, Justice Johnson received the 1995 Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award, the second highest award given by the United States Department of Justice.
From 1997 to 1999, he served on the U.S. Attorney's Capital Litigation Review Committee, which was a seven-member committee which reviewed death penalty eligible cases and recommended to the U.S. Attorney whether to seek death penalty authorization from the Attorney General in specific cases.
During his ten year tenure as a federal prosecutor, Johnson received numerous awards and commendations for his work on behalf of the United States. Notable among them was the 1995 Attorney General's Award – the second highest award given by the United States Department of Justice. That award honored Judge Johnson's long-term wiretap investigation and prosecution of a nationwide crack cocaine and money laundering network controlled by the Los Angeles-based 8-Trey Gangster Crip organization. The investigation was featured in a February 27, 1995 Time magazine article.
His article, "Defending Wiretaps: 'Think in the Beginning What the End Will Bring,'" was published in the September 1997 United States Attorneys' Bulletin. From 1994 to 1997, he was a faculty member of the Office of Legal Education in the U.S. Department of Justice, teaching "Evidence for Experienced Criminal Litigators."
Johnson was appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger in 2009 as a Justice on the California Court of Appeal, Second District. Johnson was retained in the 2010 election with 66.4% of the vote.
He previously served on the board of directors for the Association of Business Trial Lawyers and the Federal Bar Association.
He is a Director of the Western Justice Center Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing opportunities for peaceful conflict resolution and diminishing the power of violence in our society. He is also a member of the United States Army Advisory Board for the Los Angeles Recruiting Station.
Johnson holds a second degree Black Belt in Hapkido karate.
Johnson and his wife Meghan have four children and live in the San Fernando Valley.
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
Associate Justice
Justice
Justice is a concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, religion, or equity, along with the punishment of the breach of said ethics; justice is the act of being just and/or fair.-Concept of justice:...
of the California Court of Appeal
California Court of Appeal
The California Courts of Appeal are the state intermediate appellate courts in the U.S. state of California. The state is geographically divided into six appellate districts...
.
Early Life and Education
Jeffrey W. Johnson was born in Columbia, South CarolinaColumbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
. He attended A.C. Flora High School and led a team to the South Carolina Debate Team Championship in 1977. He graduated A.C. Flora in 1978 with first honors. He attended Duke University as an Angier Biddle Duke Scholar, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree with a double major in political science and history. In 1981, after receiving the A.B. Duke Scholarship, Johnson studied Politics, Philosophy, and Economics at Oxford University in Oxford, England. Johnson was President of his graduating class at Duke and received the President Terry Sanford Senior Leadership Award. He graduated in 1982 with honors.
Johnson earned his J.D. from Yale Law School in 1985. That same year, he was awarded the Gherini Prize for the best analytical paper in the discipline of International Law. While at Yale, Justice Johnson was a member of the law school's Discipline Policy Committee. He also served as a graduate affiliate of Silliman College, an undergraduate residential college within Yale College, and volunteered as a "big brother" through Yale's Dwight Hall Big Brother Adoption program.
Legal career
From 1985 to 1989, Johnson worked as an associate with the Manatt Phelps law firm in Los Angeles. In 1989, he was appointed to the position of Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California. In 1994, Judge Johnson was appointed Deputy Chief in the Narcotics Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. For his work on a long-term wiretap investigation and prosecution of a nationwide crack cocaine and money laundering network, Justice Johnson received the 1995 Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award, the second highest award given by the United States Department of Justice.
From 1997 to 1999, he served on the U.S. Attorney's Capital Litigation Review Committee, which was a seven-member committee which reviewed death penalty eligible cases and recommended to the U.S. Attorney whether to seek death penalty authorization from the Attorney General in specific cases.
During his ten year tenure as a federal prosecutor, Johnson received numerous awards and commendations for his work on behalf of the United States. Notable among them was the 1995 Attorney General's Award – the second highest award given by the United States Department of Justice. That award honored Judge Johnson's long-term wiretap investigation and prosecution of a nationwide crack cocaine and money laundering network controlled by the Los Angeles-based 8-Trey Gangster Crip organization. The investigation was featured in a February 27, 1995 Time magazine article.
His article, "Defending Wiretaps: 'Think in the Beginning What the End Will Bring,'" was published in the September 1997 United States Attorneys' Bulletin. From 1994 to 1997, he was a faculty member of the Office of Legal Education in the U.S. Department of Justice, teaching "Evidence for Experienced Criminal Litigators."
Judicial Service
In April 1999, Johnson was appointed to the federal bench as a United States Magistrate Judge. He was reappointed to a second term in April 2007. While on the federal bench, he served on several committees of the United States District Court for the Central District of California, including the Capital Cases Committee, the Rules Committee, the Criminal Justice Act Committee, and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee.Johnson was appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger in 2009 as a Justice on the California Court of Appeal, Second District. Johnson was retained in the 2010 election with 66.4% of the vote.
Personal life
Johnson is involved with many youth outreach programs and his efforts have been recognized and honored via several California Department of Education Commendations and Los Angeles Unified School District Service CommendationsHe previously served on the board of directors for the Association of Business Trial Lawyers and the Federal Bar Association.
He is a Director of the Western Justice Center Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing opportunities for peaceful conflict resolution and diminishing the power of violence in our society. He is also a member of the United States Army Advisory Board for the Los Angeles Recruiting Station.
Johnson holds a second degree Black Belt in Hapkido karate.
Johnson and his wife Meghan have four children and live in the San Fernando Valley.