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At the close of a trial Friday, jurors found Ronald Lee Johnson
Jr. guilty of four counts. Superior Court Judge Joseph
Crosswhite sentenced Johnson to 6 to 17 months in prison for a
felony obstruction conviction, court records show. The sentence
for a felony extortion count and two counts for the willful
failure to discharge his duties included probation.
Crosswhite also ordered that Johnson, 41, be removed from the
Johnston County school board, The News & Observer of Raleigh
reported. Johnson, once considered a rising star among
Republicans, had narrowly won reelection in November.
The court also revoked Johnson's law enforcement certification.
Johnson is a former Smithfield police officer who was fired in
late 2022 on charges of “detrimental personal conduct,” the
newspaper reported.
Boz Zellinger, a special state prosecutor who handled the
prosecution, told Crosswhite that Johnson “has left a wake of
destruction behind him” and that active prison time was
warranted.
Johnson had been accused of threatening in 2022 to release
compromising audio involving congressional candidate DeVan
Barbour unless Barbour got a woman that they both knew to
falsely deny that she was having an extramarital affair with
Johnson.
Barbour, a unsuccessful Republican candidate in 2022 and 2024,
testified in the trial that concerns about the recording’s
release worried him constantly leading to the 2022 GOP primary,
and that he repeatedly contacted the woman asking her to deny an
affair with Johnson.
While on the witness stand Thursday, Johnson denied asking
Barbour to get a statement from the woman, but rather he let
Barbour know about the recording to help him out.
“He didn’t release any recording or make any public statements
about Mr. Barbour,” Johnson attorney Amos Tyndall said.
The obstruction of justice charge stems from allegations Johnson
removed potential evidence from his office at a gym after the
investigation had begun.
The convictions on failure to discharge duties relate to secret
recordings of school board sessions closed to the public and
allegations that Johnson retaliated against a former friend by
trying to get his children transferred to a different school.
The school board previously censured Johnson over the recording
of closed-session meetings and the attempted transfer.
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