Carl Jean Johnson (July 2, 1929 – December 29, 1988) was a

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...

physician who opposed

nuclear testing Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the performance of nuclear weapons and the effects of Nuclear explosion, their explosion. Nuclear testing is a sensitive political issue. Governments have often performed tests to si ...

Birth and marriage

Carl Johnson was born in Sims, Indiana on July 2, 1929, to Fredrick Chancy Johnson and Enabel Routh. He had siblings George, Derrold and Sarah. He was raised in

Grant County, Indiana Grant County is a county in central Indiana in the United States Midwest. At the time of the 2020 census, the population was 66,674. The county seat is Marion. Important paleontological discoveries, dating from the Pliocene epoch, have been m ...

. At age 12 he came down with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

, and though he overcame the sickness his growth was stunted. He began a strict weightlifting regimen and developed proper eating habits that allowed him to overcome his physical weakness. At least once in his later life, he would have to have cysts from the tuberculosis infection removed. Carl married Kathryn Van Deusen (1923–2005). Kathryn was the daughter of Emmett Peter Van Deusen I (1878–1965) and Margaret McKenzie Barton (1885–1963).

US Army and education

He entered service in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

on July 3, 1946. As a

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

, he was stationed in

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

as a surveyor. It was largely an uneventful tour of duty, with the exception of while surveying the island's jungles he found a wrecked

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft that utilizes air-to-ground weaponry to drop bombs, launch aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploy air-launched cruise missiles. There are two major classifications of bomber: strategic and tactical. Strateg ...

from

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

that still had the pilot's remains inside. He was discharged from Army service on March 18, 1949. He later became an Army Reservist and attained the rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

. He went to

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

and the Ohio State University College of Medicine. He had a master's degree in public health from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

Rocky Flats

In 1976 he was the Director of the

Jefferson County, Colorado Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 582,910, making it the fourth-most populous county in Colorado. The county seat is Golden, and the most populous city is Lakewood. ...

Department of Health. He reported that soil around the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant contained 44 times more

plutonium Plutonium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is a silvery-gray actinide metal that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four ...

than the government claimed. In 1977 he reported higher-than-average rates of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

and cancer among the local people. In 1980 he reported that plant workers had eight times more brain tumors than expected. In 1981 he was fired. He later won a whistleblower lawsuit against

. In 1985 he lost an election to become the

Boulder County, Colorado Boulder County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado of the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 330,758. The most populous municipality in the county and the county seat is Boulder. Boulder County comprises th ...

Director of Health.

Death and burial

Johnson died on December 29, 1988, at Lutheran Memorial Hospital in

Lakewood, Colorado Lakewood is the List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality that is the List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 15 ...

, of complications following coronary bypass surgery. He was buried in the

Fort Logan National Cemetery Fort Logan National Cemetery is a United States national cemetery, United States National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado. Fort Logan, a former U.S. Army installation, was named after Union General John A. Logan, commander of US Volunteer forces dur ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

on January 3, 1989.

Publications

* Carl J. Johnson, "Funding of Radiation Protection Standards Research", letter to the editor, ''American Journal of Public Health'', February 1979. * Carl J. Johnson, "Cancer Incidence in an Area of Radioactive Fallout Downwind from the Nevada Test Site", ''Journal of the American Medical Association'', Volume 251, Number 2, January 13, 1984. * Carl J. Johnson, "Rocky Flats: Death Inc." '

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

', Op-Ed; Sunday, December 18, 1988, Op-ed E-23.

Images

Image:Johnson-Carl 03.jpg, Fredrick Chancy Johnson (1902 − c. 1975) (left) and Carl J. Johnson (1929−1988) (right) Image:Carl J. Johnson (1929-1988) and family circa 1960.jpg, Carl J. Johnson (1929−1988) File:CarlJJohnsonTombstoneFtLoganCO2010-05-29 15.44.44.jpg, Gravesite at Fort Logan

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Carl Jean 1929 births 1988 deaths People from Marion, Indiana Burials at Fort Logan National Cemetery United States Army non-commissioned officers