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Dear ºìÌÒÊÓƵ Community:

It is with great sadness that I announce the death of UW alumnus The Honorable Charles V. Johnson, JD ’57, a retired King County Superior Court judge and former president of the Seattle chapter of the NAACP, on Dec. 29, 2020. He was 92.

Judge Johnson was a longtime and dedicated mentor to ºìÌÒÊÓƵ students and gave generously to student scholarships.

When Judge Johnson attended law school, he was one of only a handful of African American graduate students at UW at that time. After law school, he became a civil rights pioneer in Seattle. He was well known for his work to ensure African Americans could be hired in department stores and supermarkets and he was instrumental in the passage of the open-housing ordinance that opened Seattle neighborhoods to people of color.

He had a lengthy judicial career on the King County Superior Court bench, where he served as one of the only Black judges and had a huge impact on lawyers and participants in his courtroom. He spent several rotations in juvenile court, and it was clear that he cared for the young people who appeared before him.

I met Judge Johnson in my first few weeks in Seattle. I was deeply impressed with his accomplishments and his continuing commitments to others. In particular, he stressed that as dean it would be crucial to ensure UW law dedicated resources to meeting the legal needs of underserved communities.

His legal support is considered by many to have been the backbone of the civil rights movement in King County. I invite you to learn more about Judge Johnson’s legacy and impact at the .

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Judge Johnson's family has requested that donations be made to the to support the scholarship dinner in lieu of flowers. Please put "Donation for Judge Johnson" in the note line.

Please keep Judge Johnson’s family in your thoughts during this difficult time.

Regards,

Mario L. Barnes
Toni Rembe Dean and Professor of Law
UW School of Law