Judge Johnson requests hearing over charges

In an effort to clear his name and

restore his credibility on the bench, Whitefish Municipal Judge

Bradley Johnson has requested a full hearing as soon as possible on

the merits of an ethics complaint filed against him by a Columbia

Falls woman last year.

Cynthia Howell filed the complaint with

the Mon tana Judicial Standards Commission in Helena following a

July 9 traffic incident in downtown Columbia Falls in which she was

charged with disorderly conduct. Three separate attorneys had

declined to take her case, she said.

Howell alleges Johnson violated five

different rules in the state’s code of judicial conduct — promoting

confidence in the judiciary; avoiding abuse of the prestige of

judicial office; impartiality and fairness; bias, prejudice and

harassment; and extrajudicial activities in general.

In her written complaint to the

commission, Howell says she witnessed Johnson “traveling at least

50 mph” on Nucleus Avenue and followed him to the post office.

After Johnson parked, Howell claims, she rolled down her window and

“in a normal voice” informed the man exiting his vehicle that the

speed limit was 25 mph and he should slow down.

“He went ballistic,” she said, claiming

Johnson “shoved his arm into the interior of my car. I thought he

was going to strike me.”

Howell claims Johnson told her he was a

judge and ordered her to stop the car. Instead, Howell left the

post office parking lot and went home. Shortly afterward, a police

officer showed up at her door to cite her for disorderly

conduct.

Columbia Falls City Court later

dismissed the disorderly conduct charge. In its motion to dismiss

the case with prejudice, the city of Columbia Falls said in a

written statement that it “carefully considered statements from the

defendant, victim and the Columbia Falls Police Department” but

after further investigation found “there is insufficient evidence

upon which to sustain a conviction.”

Johnson, who filed a voluntary witness

statement with the Columbia Falls Police Department and provided

them with Howell’s license-plate number, has a different account of

what happened. The notion that he was going 50 mph is absolutely

not true, he said.

“I characterized the incident as

‘bizarre’ because I had actually been driving below the posted

speed limit,” he told the police. “I had just picked up six Coleman

lanterns that were free-standing in the cargo bay of my vehicle. I

was cautious about my driving to avoid damage to the lanterns.”

Johnson claims Howell rolled down her

passenger window and started to yell at him, warning him to slow

down.

“I immediately identified myself as the

judge from Whitefish and directed her to pull over,” Johnson said

in his statement.

Johnson later told the Daily Inter Lake

he never reached inside Howell’s vehicle and instead tapped on her

window and motioned for her to pull toward the curb.

“She shook her fist and made a face,”

he said.

In a Nov. 9 letter to Shauna Ryan,

executive secretary of the state’s Judicial Standards Commission,

Johnson said he denied any misconduct and any violation of relevant

judicial canons of ethics.

“I contend that any factual

representations offered by the aggrieved person are subject to

dispute and in need of independent verification,” Johnson told

Ryan.

One source of independent verification

would be video recordings made by the post office’s surveillance

system, but the post office only maintains surveillance inside the

building.

Johnson said he wanted a full hearing

to be held as soon as possible because a delay could affect his

ability “to function as a credible judge.” He also told Ryan he is

waiving his rights to confidentiality so the proceedings can be

covered in the media.

“It is important to the public that the

credibility of the judiciary be maintained, to include the

disciplinary proceedings and actions taken by the Montana Judicial

Standards Commission,” he said.

Johnson, who got his law degree at the

University of Tulsa, became Whitefish’s first elected judge in

1985. He ran unopposed until 2005, when he defeated Valerie Eve by

a 5-1 margin. He ran unopposed last year, garnering 98 percent of

the votes.