[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 37 (Friday, March 27, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S2698]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO ROY JOHNSON

  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I rise today to recall the contributions 
made to Alabama and the Nation by Roy Johnson, the district attorney 
for the Fourth Judicial Circuit of Alabama. Roy's untimely death on 
February 11, 1998, at age 49, cut short his career and deprived his 
wife Anita, his son Matthew, and his daughter Gabrielle of a loving and 
devoted husband and father.
  Roy was the friend of thousands, and I was pleased to call him a 
personal friend. In addition, I knew him well as a professional 
prosecutor with whom I worked on a regular basis during the years I 
served as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Alabama.
  Service to his country as a Marine captain demonstrated his love for 
country, but it also caused him to develop, during his service time, a 
form of hepatitis that damaged his liver and which ultimately resulted 
in his having to undergo a liver transplant operation.
  There were high hopes for the success of the operation. He seemed to 
be doing well when there occurred a sudden turn for the worst, and Roy 
was gone.
  After nearly 18 years of service to Bibb, Dallas, Hale, Perry and 
Wilcox Counties, Roy had made plans to retire from his post as district 
attorney and to commence the practice of law with his brother Robert W. 
``Robin'' Johnson II in his beloved hometown of Marion. And they also 
have law offices in Birmingham and Washington, DC.
  I am pleased today, Mr. President, that his brother Robin is here 
today to hear these remarks about my good friend, his brother, Roy 
Johnson. As his long-time chief assistant, Ed Greene said, ``Everything 
seemed so bright for him.'' His death was truly a shock to me and to 
many.
  Roy had great pride in his circuit and the people in it. He loved 
them deeply. He worked tirelessly on their behalf. The fourth judicial 
circuit is located in the heart of Alabama's Black Belt region--a 
beautiful area of the State in which the people know not only their 
neighbors, but they know the grandparents and grandchildren of their 
neighbors.
  E.T. Rolison, Jr., supervisory U.S. attorney in Mobile, AL, noted, 
``Roy did as much for law enforcement coordination as anyone I have 
[ever] seen in my 25 years with this office.'' And this was a high 
compliment from Mr. Rolison, who served for many years in the U.S. 
attorney's office and worked hard to further coordination between 
local, State and Federal law enforcement agencies.
  Mr. Barron Lankster, himself a district attorney in nearby Marengo 
County, and an African American, noted that he had commenced his career 
in Roy's office. Mr. Lankster said, ``He fully integrated his office 
when he took over and treated everyone fairly and equitably.''
  A graduate of Tulane University and the University of Alabama School 
of Law, Roy was prepared intellectually and professionally for the 
broad demands of his work. He loved history and he loved the wonderful 
Antebellum home in which he lived. The home was located right on the 
parade grounds at Marion Military Institute, an excellent military 
school. MMI, along with Judson College, have played a key role in 
making the town of Marion an extraordinary academic and intellectual 
community.
  Roy's love and support for Marion Military Institute was deep and 
longstanding. Certainly, his career in the U.S. Marines helped shape 
his belief that we must have a strong national defense. I remember with 
delight the occasion when Roy's fellow marine, Col. Ollie North, was 
under great attack in Washington. This was before Colonel North's 
rebuttal that turned the tables on his accusers a bit. But Roy spoke 
out for him then. He served with him in the Marines, and he spoke up at 
a time of great unpopularity. I congratulated him later when it turned 
out that Colonel North had turned the tables a bit on that 
circumstance. He stood by his friends. He was indeed forever true.
  During the mid-1980s, we worked together on the prosecution of three 
individuals for voter fraud in Perry County. The prosecution caused a 
great deal of furor locally and nationally. During that time I came to 
appreciate Roy's cool head, his innate decency, his legal skills, and 
his character.
  Despite political pressure, this marine never wavered. He stood firm 
for what he believed to be right, and did so in a fair and just manner. 
The bond which we developed in that case was never broken.
  There is much more that can be said about this educated, caring, 
fair, strong, loyal and kind son of the South. Certainly he was big in 
stature and big in spirit.
  I am confident that if we were able to accomplish a fully accurate 
analysis of the many contributions he made to his judicial circuit and 
his region, the most significant would be his skill and determination 
during a period of rapid social change. He helped provide equal justice 
to all and conducted himself and his office in a manner that reflected 
fairness to everyone.
  His leadership and his strength of character provided a framework 
which allowed for the development of harmonious relations between the 
races. Sometimes there would be periods of good feeling and sometimes 
there would be periods of tension and conflict. But whatever the 
situation, Roy stood firm and strong for justice and contributed 
mightily to the historic changes that have taken place in this region.
  Roy loved Marion. He loved the Black Belt and the people who lived 
there and the people he represented. I know he is pleased that his 
strong and effective chief deputy, Ed Greene, in whom he placed such 
trust over the years, has been appointed to complete his term. I have 
the greatest respect for Ed's ability and have enjoyed working with him 
over the years, and I compliment Governor Fob James for his wise 
appointment.
  I have been honored to know Roy Johnson. He was a superior public 
servant, an outstanding prosecutor. And I thank the Chair for allowing 
me to place these remarks upon the record and to express my sincerest 
sympathy to his fine family for the great loss they have suffered.
  Thank you, Mr. President.
  Mr. President, a few comments on another subject.

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