Former prosecutor J. Floyd Johnson, who pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion Nov. 10, has been suspended from the practice of law - for now, just on a temporary basis.
Former prosecutor J. Floyd Johnson, who pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion Nov. 10, has been suspended from the practice of law - for now, just on a temporary basis.
Based on the petition for interim suspension filed by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, the Louisiana Supreme Court suspended Johnson's law license Dec. 10. According to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, no other information is available until the Supreme Court decides how long the suspension will last.
Johnson, 50, entered the guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik in Lafayette. In July, while still a prosecutor with 15th Judicial District Attorney Mike Harson's office, Johnson was charged in a bill of information with the single count of tax evasion and resigned from the DA's office shortly thereafter. Johnson, who had been with the DA's office for 15 years when he resigned in July, was making about $83,000 as a full-time prosecutor. At sentencing, Johnson faces up to five years in prison, a $100,000 fine, and a mandatory minimum term of not less than two years and not more than three years supervised release following confinement. According to Haik's office, no sentencing date has been set.
As first reported by The Independent Weekly, Johnson's felony conviction meant he would lose not only his law license, but also the right to vote, right to run for office and right to possess a firearm. Because of the nature of his crime - that he used a client trust account to hide income - he may face permanent disbarment, a former prosecutor tells the paper.