In Defense of Trustee James Johnson

James Johnson’s service to our Village during the last four years has been nothing short of remarkable. They more than deserve to be elected as our next Village Clerk.

Johnson’s work ethic is extraordinary. Their pre and post board meeting reports, a trailblazing and valuable approach, keeps villagers informed and involved. A mention of Carvana in one of those digests alerted Skokie residents to the plans to build a glass car vending machine across the street from the vulnerable Harms Woods Nature Preserve. National experts advised it would be a profound threat to migrating birds. Though his fellow trustees ignored the warnings from nationally pre-eminent authorities and turned a blind eye to local community opposition, Johnson listened and was the lone vote against the project. Carvana was subsequently stripped of its license to sell calls in Illinois.

Johnson spearheaded three successful ballot initiatives for electoral reforms, resulting in referenda that guaranteed geographical trustee representation throughout the Village, non-partisan ballots and term limits. An historic achievement now in effect.

The original sin that so inflamed the Skokie Caucus Party (SCP) machine is important to understand. Johnson made bitter enemies by accurately pointed out rubber stamp and block voting patterns by the SCP majority. Fellow trustees ostracized them and hostile behavior directed toward James was both relentless and abhorrent.

More fuel. Johnson, in an attempt to address the deeply politicized Skokie legal department, reported that members of that department had offered the bribe of a guaranteed committee chair (prior to the election) if they would abandon their campaign for trustee. Johnson brought a formal complaint to the Village Ethics Commission.

The following is what I believe to be true and has never been denied despite multiple opportunities to do so. My post represents yet another opportunity to factually repudiate the following conflict of interest and bias concerns.

Johnson wasn’t aware that the Chair of the Ethics Commission had been recruited by one of the members of the legal department they had accused of attempted bribery. A more significant concern is that the two were reportedly personal friends.

Assuming those facts to be true, the appointment of the friend to sit in judgement and lead ethic commission deliberations regarding themself was in direct contravention of Village ordinances that govern conflict of interest and bias. The avoidance of those two issue is precisely the point of those ordinances. The chairman was asked to recuse by Johnson and other residents but refused.

An outside lawyer, hired by that same legal department, tried to dismiss bias concerns by offering incorrect advice as to governing law, according to an outside agency, the Citizen Advocacy Center (CAC).

Please see the attached link from the CAC that validates conflict of interest and bias concerns. CAC Memo

An explanation of their mission is footnoted[1]. They do not offer candidate endorsements. Nothing in this post should be attributed to them other than the memo.

So, based on all of the above, each and every deliberation and decision by the Ethics Commission that involves Johnson, including the most recent on the eve of an election, should be considered tainted and must be ignored. We have every reason to believe that Johnson has been denied that elementary and foundational right to a fair hearing.

We anticipated the nasty “under investigation” stories attacking Johnson. Postcards to that effect are probably in the mail. Worth noting that one of the folks who brought the most recent ethics complaint is the campaign manager for an opposition candidate.

Johnson’s intelligence, leadership, work ethic and ongoing courage has more than earned our vote. They’ve been there for four years, undeterred, representing all us in the face of vitriolic hostility.

Now it’s our turn. Please vote for James Johnson to be Skokie’s next Village Clerk.

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Our mission at Citizen Advocacy Center is to build democracy for the 21st century by strengthening the citizenry's capacities, resources, and institutions for self-governance.

We do so by holding elected officials accountable for their actions and empowering citizens with the tools they need to govern themselves.

We do not endorse any candidate or political party for office.