James Lawrence Johnson

James Lawrence Johnson was born on December 8, 1945, in Cincinnati, Ohio to his loving parents James Horace and Janie Lou Johnson. He was raised in the Lincoln Courts public housing projects in Cincinnati’s West End until the age of 13. In 1959, the family moved to the Setty Kuhn Terrace public housing projects in Walnut Hills. The Johnson family left public housing when he was 15 years old. James joined New Prospect Baptist Church at an early age and remained a faithful and engaged member until his passing.

James graduated from Walnut Hills High School in 1964. He received a BA in Psychology from the University of Cincinnati in 1970. After graduation, he worked for General Electric and Mobile Oil in various cities, including New York City, for two years. In 1972, he returned to Cincinnati to work as a Probation Officer in Hamilton County Juvenile Court.

In 1973, James became the founding director of Emanuel Bridge Boys Group Home, where he worked until its closure in 1979/1980. He entered The Ohio State University College of Law in the fall of 1977, graduated from the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1980, and was admitted to the Ohio Bar in November of that year.

In 1980, James began working for the City of Cincinnati, mainly in the City Solicitor’s Office. He would serve the City of Cincinnati for more than 25 years, serving as an Assistant City Solicitor in both the prosecutor’s office and the civil division and serving as the private complaint coordinator. From 1991 to 1996, he served as an Assistant to the Cincinnati City Manager and was the Chief Investigator of the City’s Office of Municipal Investigation (OMI), where he investigated allegations of misconduct by city employees, including police officers and city contractors. While in this role, he was a founding member of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE).

James retired from the City in January 2006 but returned to work in January 2008 in the Office of the Hamilton County Public Defender, Juvenile Division. He retired as a trial counsel team leader in January 2015.

What he was most proud of…

In the spring of 1988, James founded the Summer Work Experience in Law (SWEL) as a volunteer. He created SWEL because there were many things that he wished he had known on his journey to law school. His goal was to expose as many Black high school and college students as possible who aspired to practice law to the legal profession. Through SWEL, James knew that he could further increase diversity, and thus positively impact the legal profession in the Greater Cincinnati area. Although SWEL now has an active and involved board of directors, James single-handedly managed SWEL from 1988-2006.

SWEL began as a pilot program serving seven African American students and has since grown into a fully developed program serving more than 30 high school and college students each summer. Through paid internships, which supplement weekly Friday academic sessions, SWEL has provided real-world legal experience to well over 500 African American students. The list of work sites includes the chambers of state and federal judges; city and county governmental offices; major local law firms; and the offices of legal counsel for major corporations, including Procter & Gamble. SWEL celebrated its 30th anniversary with a gala in downtown Cincinnati in 2018.

For James, the SWEL program and mentoring African American students was his life-long work. He dedicated himself to these students in various ways, remaining committed, involved, and invested in their lives even after their summer internship within SWEL. Many of them attribute their careers as attorneys to James, also affectionately referred to as “Mr. J, Uncle J, Grandpa James, and Jimmy Jam.”

James was a world traveler who visited Africa multiple times. He also enjoyed trips to the Dominican Republic and the Bayou Classic with his friends. He took great pride in his extensive African art collection, loved the music of Earth, Wind & Fire, and was an avid reader. For many years, he hosted an annual Kwanzaa celebration primarily attended by SWEL interns, family, and friends. He was a dedicated Bengals fan and season ticket holder with his best friend of over 73 years, Arthur Pate. You could count on seeing them and other friends at home games for the last 20+ years. In recent years, he enjoyed bringing friends and family together on Zoom calls. Even with all his responsibilities, he devoted himself to caring for his sister, Jackie, in the years leading up to her death. James lived a life of service, had a great sense of humor, and was unfiltered with those he loved. He was a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, initiated March 6, 1965, and received many honors, accolades, and recognitions throughout his life. At his core, he loved and adored his family.

James leaves to cherish his memory and carry on his legacy: two brothers, Roddrick (Dianne) Johnson and Reginald (Noreen) Johnson, two nieces, Nicole Barlow and Corri Johnson, two nephews, Desmond (Gemima) Barlow and Nilaja (Frances) Johnson Sr., great-nephews Julian Barlow & Nilaja Johnson Jr., and great-niece Augusta Barlow. His loving parents James & Janie Lou Johnson, brother Jerry Johnson, two sisters Jeanette and Jacquetta “Jackie” Johnson and niece Margaret “Missy” Allen preceded him in death. He also leaves to cherish his memory “adopted” daughter Doneaka Rucker-Brooks, goddaughter Adrianna (Johnny) Willis, “adopted” granddaughters Vivienne & Ava Willis and Alexis Metts, special cousin Char “Neecie” Ingram, special nephew Anthony White, mentee and close friend Ken Parker, lifelong friend Arthur Pate and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, mentees/interns and friends.

To send flowers to the family or place a tree in memory of James Lawrence Johnson, please visit our Tribute Store.