Napoleon B. Johnson

Johnson was educated in the Anadarko schools, Mary Gregory Presbyterian Mission, Eastern University Prep School, Henry Kendall College (later renamed as the University of Tulsa), where he spent two years. Then he went to Cumberland University, where he earned the LL.B. degree in June, 1921. He returned to Oklahoma, where he passed the bar exam and became a licensed attorney, then went to work in the legal department of the Osage Agency, before moving back to Claremore. Johnson worked for the U.S. Indian Service in 1913–17, then became assistant county attorney for Rogers County, Oklahoma in 1923–25, then county attorney 1925–28. Herley wrote that Johnson was elected to another term as county attorney in 1930, which he resigned in 1931 to open his own law practice; he continued for three years, when he was appointed as district judge for the Oklahoma Twelfth District. Harlow's biographical sketch noted that Johnson attended tribal meetings at Talequah and "...takes unusual interest in tribal affairs and educational work for Indians." Harlow also wrote that in 1920, Johnson was listed as a registered Democrat and County Attorney for Rogers County, Oklahoma. p. 717. Herley noted that about 1925, Johnson began participating in Democratic conventions in Oklahoma City. ==Indian activism==

Consistent with his political party affiliation, Johnson actively supported Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal Program in the early 1930s. He was soon disappointed, and particularly disagreed with the new Democratic Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), John Collier. By 1952, Johnson was hearing warnings that many members felt that his approach was ineffective in combating the political leaders who continued to press for termination of Federal benefits to Indians. Some members even claimed that NCAI was controlled by "...a small clique of its present officers," and "stooges of the Indian Bureau." An astute politician, Johnson announced that he was resigning as President of NCAI, and would be replaced by W. W. Short. ==Oklahoma Supreme Court Scandals==

Judge Corn's Confession On December 9, 1964, former Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice, N. S. Corn, then 80 years old and serving an 18-month sentence in a federal prison for income tax evasion, gave a sworn statement to the government detailing his involvement in the crime of bribery. The document named two other Supreme Court justices, Napoleon B. Johnson and Earl Welch, plus several other people as also participating in the scheme. Corn also admitted that he could not recall failing to receive a bribe in any of the 24 years he had served on the court. One copy of Corn's affidavit was sent to Federal Judge Stephen Chandler. Simply having Corn's affidavit in hand was not enough to start a battle for reform. Chandler then called one of the most recently elected Supreme Court judges, William H. Berry, for a private meeting at Chandler's home, where Berry read the document and agreed that somehow the document must be made public. With Chandler's agreement, Berry contacted Oklahoma County Representative, G. T. Blankenship, who was appalled by what the document revealed. Berry assured Blankenship that if he would read Corn's affidavit aloud from the House floor, he (Blankenship) would be protected by legislative immunity and could not be sued. The representative agreed to do this. After Johnson's conviction, Justice Berry wrote a book, Justice for Sale: The Shocking Scandal of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, detailing his views of the scandal. In it, he placed much of the blame on the system Oklahoma used for selecting judges, especially those trying to become appellate judges. Berry called the old system, in which bribes were simply passed off as "campaign contributions," "...a scandal waiting to happen." Burck Bailey, president of the Oklahoma Bar Association, said in a 1988 address to the OBA:"The villain in this sordid affair may be the method used in Oklahoma to fill judicial office.... The potential for corruption is inherent in the system. These payoffs, (as claimed by Cargill and Corn) were simply ‘campaign contributions’." ==Personal==

Napoleon B. Johnson married Martha Lee Webber. The couple had one child, a daughter. He adhered to the Presbyterian faith, and belonged to the Masons, the American Legion, and the Chamber of Commerce. ==See also==