Charley Eugene Johns (February 27, 1905January 23, 1990) was an American politician. Johns served as the 32nd Governor of

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

from 1953 to 1955. Johns was born in Starke, Florida. He worked as a

railroad conductor A conductor (North American English) or guard (Commonwealth English) is a train crew member responsible for operational and safety duties that do not involve actual operation of the train/locomotive. The role is common worldwide under various j ...

and insurance

agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuran ...

before being elected to the State Senate as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

in 1947. Johns became the Senate President in April 1953, a position Markley Johns, his brother, had been elected to. Johns was a member of the "

Pork Chop Gang The Pork Chop Gang was a group of 20 Democratic Party legislators from rural areas of North Florida who worked together to dominate the Florida legislature, especially to maintain segregation and conserve the disproportionate political power of m ...

", a group of 20 conservative legislators from North Florida who favored

racial segregation Racial segregation is the separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Segregation can involve the spatial separation of the races, and mandatory use of different institutions, ...

and consolidated political power and money in the northern, more rural parts of the state. One of the Johns most remembered initiatives during his early state Senate years was to build a new, portable

electric chair The electric chair is a specialized device used for capital punishment through electrocution. The condemned is strapped to a custom wooden chair and electrocuted via electrodes attached to the head and leg. Alfred P. Southwick, a Buffalo, New Yo ...

to be transported by truck with an electric generator and set up in a jail or a courthouse where the convicted was sentenced. After the death of Governor

Dan McCarty Daniel Thomas McCarty (January 18, 1912 – September 28, 1953) was an American politician who served in the Florida House of Representatives and served as its speaker. He briefly served as the 31st Governor of Florida from January 6, 1953, un ...

on September 28, 1953, Johns became the

Acting Governor An acting governor is a person who acts in the role of governor. In Commonwealth jurisdictions where the governor is a vice-regal position, the role of "acting governor" may be filled by a lieutenant governor (as in most Australian states) or a ...

under the provisions of the state constitution at that time, which provided for the state Senate President to become the Acting Governor upon the death, incapacitation, or resignation of the Governor. During his term as Acting Governor, Johns promoted highway construction, eliminating

toll Toll may refer to: Transportation * Toll (fee) a fee charged for the use of a road or waterway ** Toll road, a type of road which for which payment is required for passage ** Road pricing, the modern practice of charging for road use ** Road to ...

s on the

Overseas Highway The Overseas Highway is a highway carrying U.S. Route 1 (US 1) through the Florida Keys to Key West. Large parts of it were built on the former right-of-way of the Overseas Railroad, the Key West Extension of the Florida East Coast Ra ...

between Miami and

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

. He was also an advocate for prison

reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

. In 1954, Johns ran for election to a term as governor in his own right, but was defeated by

LeRoy Collins Thomas LeRoy Collins (March 10, 1909 – March 12, 1991) was an American politician who served as the 33rd governor of Florida from 1955 to 1961. Collins began his governorship after winning a special election in 1954, and was elected to a fo ...

. After leaving office on January 4, 1955, he returned to the Florida Senate, serving until 1966. Johns is most remembered for his support and chairmanship of the infamous

Florida Legislative Investigation Committee The Florida Legislative Investigation Committee (commonly known as the Johns Committee) was established by the Florida Legislature in 1956, during the era of the Red Scare#Second Red Scare, Second Red Scare and the Lavender Scare. Like the more fa ...

, nicknamed the "Johns Committee" because of Johns' chairmanship. This committee participated in the

Red Scare A Red Scare is a form of moral panic provoked by fear of the rise of left-wing ideologies in a society, especially communism and socialism. Historically, red scares have led to mass political persecution, scapegoating, and the ousting of thos ...

and Lavender scare by investigating communists, homosexuals, and

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...

advocates among the students and faculty of Florida's university system. They were responsible for revoking teachers' certificates and firing university professors. By 1963, the committee had forced the dismissal or resignation of over 100 professors and deans at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

and the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, Tampa, Florida, United States, and other campuses in St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg and Sarasota, ...

. One professor, Sigismond Diettrich, chair of the geography department of the University of Florida, attempted suicide after being investigated by the committee. The state legislature ended funding for the committee in 1964 after it released a report called ''

Homosexuality and Citizenship in Florida ''Homosexuality and Citizenship in Florida'', also known as the Purple Pamphlet, was an anti-homosexual propaganda pamphlet published in January 1964 by the Florida Legislative Investigation Committee (FLIC) of the Florida Legislature led by ...

'', which infamously became known as the "Purple Pamphlet".Full text: http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00004805/00001, retrieved July 20, 2015. Its many photographs depicting homosexual acts outraged legislators and reportedly copies of the report were being sold as pornography in New York City.

References

* Beutke, Allyson A. ''Behind Closed Doors: The Dark Legacy of the Johns Committee''. Documentary, 2000. * Schnur, James Anthony. ''Cold warriors in the hot sunshine : the Johns Committee's assault on civil liberties in Florida, 1956–1965''. Master's thesis, University of South Florida, 1995. * Stark, Bonnie. ''McCarthyism in Florida : Charley Johns and the Florida legislative investigation committee July''. Master's thesis, University of South Florida, 1985.

External links

Florida governors biography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johns, Charley Eugene 1905 births 1990 deaths Baptists from Florida Democratic Party Florida state senators People from Starke, Florida Presidents of the Florida Senate University of Florida alumni Democratic Party governors of Florida Pork Chop Gang Conductor (rail) Businesspeople from Florida 20th-century American businesspeople American businesspeople in insurance 20th-century members of the Florida Legislature