According to the reprimand, Johnson’s grandson was charged for driving with a suspended license. She reportedly then contacted the magistrate’s office and identified herself as a judge in the telephone conversation.
Sometime after that phone conversation, court documents reveal that Johnson wrote a letter to the magistrate’s office and stated that her son wished to plead guilty in his absence for time served. In the letter, Johnson identified herself as a judge and told the magistrate that she found her staff to be “rude.”
Johnson alleges that she did not place the call in an attempt to get the charge dismissed but to facilitate her grandson’s plea as he was currently in jail for other unrelated charges.
The reprimand states that Johnson is aware that she should not have used her title in speaking to the magistrate’s office and “regrets her conduct.” Johnson reportedly told SC Supreme Court authorities that she will not repeat her conduct in the future.
Johnson was first reprimanded by the courts in 2000 for violating judicial standards.
According to court documents, in 1993 Johnson conducted a bond hearing for her grandson. The reprimand states because of the conflict of interest, an interim judge should have been appointed for the case.
From 1995 to 1997, Johnson also reportedly held several court cases in abeyance. This practice was not authorized under South Carolina law.
Johnson has served as a municipal judge for Goose Creek for approximately 30 years.
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