Suspended SC Solicitor Johnson may be too poor to afford lawyer, judge hints
An S.C. judge Thursday raised the possibility that suspended 5th Circuit Solicitor Dan Johnson, facing embezzlement charges, may not have enough money to hire a lawyer and could use a court-appointed lawyer.
Circuit Court Judge Clifton Newman raised the issue near the end of an eight-minute bond hearing for Johnson, noting the suspended solicitor had not yet hired a full-time attorney to represent him on the felony charges that he faces.
“Mr. Johnson will be required to advise the clerk of the state grand jury within 10 days whether he intends to represent himself, to obtain counsel or to seek to have counsel appointed if he is indigent,” Newman told Johnson’s temporary attorney, John Rakowsky, of West Columbia.
Rakowsky, who stood by Johnson’s side during the hearing, told Newman that he was representing Johnson on a one-time basis, at least for the present, and free of charge.
As solicitor, Johnson, 47, was paid roughly $140,000 a year and, according to credit card statements, charged thousands of dollars a month to his expense account. Prosecutors allege Johnson used taxpayer-paid credit cards, issued by the solicitor’s office, to buy expensive dinners, rent luxury limos and travel extensively, including to U.S. casino complexes and abroad.
If Johnson is too poor to hire an attorney, Judge Newman said, he will have to be screened by the state grand jury office to see if he qualifies for a court-appointed lawyer. Under the U.S. Constitution, all indigent defendants in criminal cases are allowed to have a taxpayer-paid lawyer.
At hearing’s end, Judge Newman gave Johnson a $25,000 personal recognizance bond, meaning Johnson didn’t put up any money to remain free on the charges until his trial.
Immediately after the hearing, Johnson — escorted by Richland County sheriff’s deputies — slipped out of a back entrance of the courtroom and exited the Richland County Courthouse undisturbed.
The hearing took place in a courtroom on the third floor of the courthouse, next to the offices where Johnson, until only weeks ago, had a huge office filled with mementos and books. In that office, Johnson for eight years presided over the prosecution of thousands of criminal defendants who, like Johnson on Thursday, stood before a judge.
Asked Thursday by Newman if he had anything to say, Johnson said, “No, your honor.”
More charges against Johnson may be in the offing, the S.C. Attorney General’s office indicated.
“This is an ongoing investigation,” said Joshua Underwood, a senior assistant attorney general, who asked Judge Newman to require Johnson to surrender his passport, noting, “Mr. Johnson is well-known to be an international traveler.”
Johnson faces state charges of misconduct in office and embezzlement, including using taxpayer money to pay for personal expenses “unrelated to any official business with the solicitor’s office.”
Rakowsky told the judge that Johnson willingly would give up his passport and stressed Johnson’s roots to the area, including a home in Blythewood, a 6-month-old child, a wife who is a teacher, and ties to both The Citadel and the University of South Carolina Law School, both of which he graduated from.
Last week, Gov. Henry McMaster, R-Richland, suspended Johnson, a Democrat, from the 5th Circuit solicitor’s post, appointing Heather Weiss, a deputy state attorney general, as interim solicitor.
The solicitor’s office has a budget of $8 million a year and more than 100 employees. Johnson was running for a third four-year term before questions were raised about his office’s spending, leading to his defeat in the June Democratic primary.
A federal grand jury also has indicted Johnson and Holland on charges of fraud and theft of government money. A bond hearing on the federal charges will be held in U.S. District Court at 10 a.m. Tuesday.
This story was originally published September 27, 2018 at 3:08 PM.