Jack B. Johnson

Early life and education Johnson grew up on Johns Island, located outside of Charleston, South Carolina. The fifth of ten children, Johnson's mother was a maid and his father was a farmer who raised white potatoes, okra, and string beans. He attended a segregated high school, which he claimed heavily shaped his worldview as a young person. He served until his term expired on December 6, 2010.

A November 20, 2006, article in The Washington Post detailed excessive travel expenses claimed by Johnson:

Corruption charges In 2010, the Office of the Maryland State Prosecutor began investigating whether Johnson and four other Prince George's County council members had solicited bribes and favors while deliberating on a one-million-dollar annual lease for a county agency.

On November 12, 2010, Jack Johnson and his wife Leslie were arrested by the FBI as part of the federal probe of political corruption in Prince George's County. They were charged with witness tampering and destruction of evidence. According to court documents filed by the FBI, Johnson is accused of taking kickbacks and bribes in exchange for helping a developer secure federal funding for housing developments. Johnson can be heard on a wiretap instructing Leslie to locate and flush a $100,000 check from the developer down a toilet at their home and to hide $79,600 in cash in her bra as FBI agents knocked at the door of their home with a search warrant. The Johnsons were charged with crimes that carried a sentence of up to 20 years in jail for each offense, but they were both released with Jack Johnson being placed on home detention with electronic monitoring. Johnson remained in office until December 6, when his term expired; Leslie was sworn in as a newly elected county council member on the same day; however, she was not eligible to remain in the office if she were convicted of a felony.

On February 14, 2011, Johnson was indicted for allegedly soliciting more than $200,000 in bribes as part of a conspiracy that dates back to 2003. While Johnson is the only person named in the indictment, two unnamed developers were named co-conspirators in the indictment. The indictment reports that the FBI recorded conversations between Johnson, a developer and the county director of housing where cash bribes were solicited.

On May 17, 2011, Johnson agreed to a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty to extortion and witness- and evidence-tampering. Leslie Johnson pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges on June 30, 2011.

On December 6, 2011, Johnson was sentenced to seven years and three months in Butner federal prison in North Carolina. He was also fined $100,000.

Johnson continued serving his sentence after a move to the Cumberland Federal Correctional Institution, with prisoner number 52777-037. He is a member of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity.