Nels Johnson

Nels G. Johnson (April 30, 1896 – December 2, 1958) served as a justice of the North Dakota Supreme Court from April 1, 1954, until his death on December 2, 1958. Early life

Born in Akranes, Iceland, Johnson immigrated to the United States in 1900 with his parents, Gudbjartur Jonsson and Gudrun Olafsdottir, and brother Jon. They settled on a McHenry County farm near Upham, North Dakota, along the Mouse River. The eldest of six children, he graduated from Bottineau High School. During World War I, he served in the U.S. Army in France, participating in battles at St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne, Marbache, and Lucey.

Legal and judicial career

Johnson began practicing law in Towner, North Dakota, and served as McHenry County State’s Attorney from 1934 to 1944. After six years in private practice, he joined the North Dakota Supreme Court on April 1, 1954, at age 57. He won election in 1954 and secured a ten-year term in 1958. Instead, he died at age 62 after serving four years and eight months. he wrote for a unanimous court, overturning Oscar Whiteman’s second-degree murder conviction due to a coerced confession and an invalid waiver of counsel. The Dunn County Sheriff faced conviction for civil rights violations over the coerced confessions. The Starr murder case drew over 60 articles in the Bismarck Tribune between 1954 and 1982.